My Love, My Childhood Friend
by timelessS2clois
Summary: A group of friends part ways after high school, but eight years later, one comes home and brings everyone back together, starting a chain of events that might just lead to romance blossoming in places no one saw coming! A love story between the best of friends.
1. Chapter 1

**PART 1, Chapter 1**

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><p>Syaoran Li, age 26, leaned back against his seat and bit back the really strong urge to walk out of the restaurant. He hated matchmaking and he hated group dates, but here he was now, sitting in one.<p>

He'd lost a bet a few weeks ago to an old friend currently sitting two seats to his left. He mentally cursed the baseball team he had bet would win. Because of them, here he was, staring at a dolled up woman who seemed too self-conscious to swallow another bite of her dinner.

Surveying the situation, he noted that the two women farthest from him were shooting him glances all night. The third woman couldn't keep her eyes off of Hiro, the winner of the bet. Takashi, another old friend, seemed interested in the fourth one - the one in front of Syaoran - who instead seemed interested in Eriol, his best buddy.

And Syaoran wasn't interested in any of them.

Sure they were all beautiful, with their perfect hair and bright, seemingly big eyes, and rosy red cheeks. They were all equally attractive. But he'd dated enough attractive women before to know that looks just weren't enough. Not enough for a relationship to last anyway.

And he was 26. He figured it was about time to start getting serious about one woman. He'd never been in a serious relationship before and… well, everyone around him was starting to settle down. Maybe it was about time.

But meeting someone like this – in this superficial way – didn't sit well with him. He grabbed his glass of wine and downed it as though it was a shot of tequila.

"What are your favorite desserts?" The woman at the far end asked, her eyes resting on Syaoran.

"I like cheesecake," Hiro answered quickly. "You?"

"Wait, I want to know what everyone likes first," she said.

Hiro cleared his throat. "What do you like? Syaoran."

"Uh...I'm not a big fan of desserts." He loved them. But she didn't have to know that.

"But if you had to pick anything."

Hiro sent Eriol a look, who tried to hide the smirk on his face.

"Cupcakes." Syaoran wasn't a big fan of cupcakes.

"Seriously? I can make cupcakes really well! They're my specialty. I make different flavors of cupcakes. I'll make some for you sometime," she promised, flashing him a bright smile.

He was about to protest when Eriol interrupted and said, "What a great idea!"

It wasn't that Syaoran was closed to the idea of casual dating. He just knew himself well enough to know that if he wasn't attracted right away, he would never be attracted. And none of them interested him at all.

:::

"You could've shown a little more interest in her, Li," Eriol said lightly. "I felt bad."

"I don't want to lead them on." Syaoran pulled his tie loose. "You could've asked her out, Hiro."

"Why would I when all night she had her eyes on you?" He griped.

The three of them were walking to the train station from the restaurant. Only Taka seemed to have hit it off with one of the women. With work the next day, none of the three men were willing to stay for another drink.

"Well that was a successful night," Eriol said derisively. "Why'd you bring him, Hiro? No woman will ever notice us if this guy's with us."

"He made the numbers even..." Hiro moaned. "Why _are_ you so good-looking?"

Syaoran chuckled. "Don't hate on my genes."

"Ahh…" Eriol looked up at the cloudy sky. "Valentine's is in two weeks and here we are, single and alone…I want a girlfriend! Why is it so hard to find somebody?"

"You're just not looking hard enough."

The three turned around. Standing by an entrance to a restaurant was a violet-haired, grey-eyed woman. She was wearing a simple, long dress. Her long hair was down, framing her petite face.

She burst into delightful laughter. "No…way."

"Who the he- Daidouji?!"

"Tomoyo Daidouji?"

"I can't believe my eyes! It's really you guys!"

"What, no way!"

Syaoran laughed in disbelief. He met her first as she ran to them. When she threw her arms around him, he returned the big hug gladly. "WOW! Long time no see! Make that a really, really long time. How ya been?!"

"Oh Syaoran! It's so good to see you! I'm doing wonderful. I just got back from London a week ago," she answered breathlessly, pulling back. Her eyes took in the sight of all three men and all she could say was, "It has been SO long."

Hiro moved forward and swept Tomoyo into a hug next. "It's been _so_ long. But somehow you don't look all that different. I mean of course, we all look different and you look great, but you look like you haven't aged a bit! But I mean you're more mature-"

Syaoran slapped him on the head.

She laughed again. "I know. It's been years. What, eight years or something? You guys are…men. You're not those three boys I remember."

"You look great! But you don't look any older. It's amazing," Hiro insisted.

"Aw thanks. I think."

When Hiro and Syaoran moved aside, Eriol remained standing where he was, watching her. There was a mix of feelings going through him. Nostalgia, joy, disbelief to name a few. This was the girl he had loved secretly all throughout junior and senior high.

"Aren't you going to give me a hug?" She demanded teasingly, walking over to him.

He couldn't do much more than say, "I never thought I'd see you again."

Finally, he reached for her. She went into his arms easily and hugged him.

"I always meant to come back. I just didn't know when."

He hugged her tighter than probably what was normal.

Syaoran watched the two subtly. As one of Eriol's best friends, he knew how much he had loved her and never said a thing all throughout high school. He also saw how torn up Eriol had been when Tomoyo announced to everyone during their senior year that she was going to London. That was eight years ago.

Studying Eriol now, he began to wonder whether his friend ever did get over her.

"I was planning to give you guys a call, but I didn't know whether your numbers have changed or…if you were still here. I'm really, really, really happy I ran into you tonight," Tomoyo cried, fighting back the joyful tears. "I'm here for good. Can you give me your phone numbers?" She asked, reaching for her phone in her backpack.

They shared a few tidbits of their lives for another ten minutes at the middle of the sidewalk. Eriol didn't say much during the exchange. He was still trying to recover from the surprise of seeing her again after all these years. And on a night like this when he was feeling particularly hopeless about women in general.

At some point, Tomoyo glanced down at her watch. "I have to go, but Saturday night, let's have dinner?"

"Works for me!" Hiro replied enthusiastically.

"Sounds good."

"Yeah, for sure! We'll gather the group."

She laughed, practically jumping in happiness. "This is wonderful! I'm so glad I bumped into you!" She hugged the three of them quickly. "I'll see you guys Saturday!"

"See ya Tomo!"

"Take care of yourself."

She waved then turned around and walked away.

"You doing okay there, buddy?" Hiro teased, nudging his elbow at Syaoran.

Syaoran smirked. "Yeah, you awake Hira? What just happened to you?"

Hiro grabbed at Eriol's chest and said in a serious, mocking tone, "How's your heart, man?"

Hiro and Syaoran laughed while Eriol waved their hands off of him. "Lay off. I'm just surprised, that's all."

"Poor baby."

"Hey, if you saw Kana again," Eriol began, sending a look at Hiro, "you'd be feeling exactly how I feel right now, all right?"

"But it wasn't her!" Hiro said, smacking Eriol's head from the side. Syaoran laughed.

Arriving at the train station, they all separated ways. "I'll see you guys on Saturday," Syaoran said before waving and heading off to another platform.

What a night. Starting out with an exhaustive matchmaking party. Dinners like that used up a lot of energy. Having to put on a fake smile all night, trying to find good conversation topics. But to have the night end with the huge surprise of seeing Tomoyo again, that cheered him right up.

They had been a close group of friends since their junior high school days. For six years, they were all in the same homeroom class. It was rare to have the same classmate all throughout high school, much less _seven._ Syaoran, Eriol, Hiro, Takashi, Tomoyo, Rika, Sakura, and Naoko. After graduating from high school, five of them stayed in Tomoeda, one went to Tokyo, and the other two – Tomoyo and Rika – went off to different parts of the world chasing after their dreams.

He still remembered their last night together. Their homeroom class had a bonfire by the beach. They played with fireworks, took pictures, played sports. It had been a lot of fun. Then at the end of the night, the eight remained and exchanged stories of their high school memories. The girls cried buckets. He remembered feeling really sad that night when they all said goodbye to Tomoyo. She was leaving for London early the next morning. And he distinctly remembered consoling Eriol for a while afterwards.

And now here they were, eight years later. Tomoyo was back. Sakura was getting married. Naoko was finishing up her PhD. And last he heard, Rika was pregnant with her second kid. The women seemed to be successfully moving along life.

The men, meanwhile, were taking their time. No one was settling down yet. Then he felt a strange ache in his heart, one that he couldn't quite pinpoint. But it was somehow related to women. And maybe settling down too.

Ah well, those were thoughts for another day. As the cold wind passed him, he tightened his fists in his jacket pockets and hurried on home.

::::::

Sakura Kinomoto, age 25, woke up to the ringing of her alarm. She groaned and rolled around a few times. Still half asleep, she reached absently for the alarm clock. She squinted against the bright light streaming through her curtains and found the clock. It took her another fifteen minutes just to get out of bed.

Half an hour later when she was running out the door of her apartment building, she had a half-eaten bagel in her mouth and strands of hair flying everywhere. Her ponytail was done up messily. The bus arrived just one moment after she arrived at the stop and she ran in. The people in the bus looked at her as she tried to catch her breath. She squeezed her way to a free pole. She took a bite of her bagel and shoved the rest in her bag.

At the next stop, people began pushing their way through the bus to get off and she pushed herself right against the pole to make room for the main pathway. Someone bumped her from behind and the familiar scent made her glance up. Amused amber brown eyes met her gaze.

Her emerald eyes brightened. "Morning!"

Syaoran chuckled as he positioned himself beside her. "Woke up late today?"

She patted the flying strands downwards self-consciously. "I ran out of time this morning." Then she glanced over at him in his black suit. "You look perfect as usual. How was the group date last night?"

"Wow, way to ruin my day."

She laughed. "That bad?"

"Awful. Like every other one I've been dragged into, awful." He pointed at the diamond ring sitting on her left ring finger with his eyes. "Lucky you."

She glanced at the ring and beamed. "Yes indeed. Why don't you just say no? You will never meet a woman that way. Eriol might and Hiro might. But you, never. You're a picky, picky man."

"I say no, but I can't resist bets. It's so bad. OH you'll never believe who we bumped into last night!"

"Who?"

"Daidouji."

"Who?"

"Dai-"

Sakura grabbed his arm and almost screamed. "_WHAT?_?" When dozens of eyes went to her again, she composed herself, but screeched it under her breath. "Tomoyo?! She's back? She's ALIVE?!"

"Calm down. Yeah, she showed up out of nowhere when we were heading home from the restaurant last night. I don't even know how or what or when. All I know is she's back for good and she wants a big reunion dinner on Saturday. I was gonna text you when I got to work."

"I can't believe this! Really? _Really?_ Two months to the day I'm getting married, she comes back. When she left, it's like she just disappeared off the face of the earth. No emails, no phone calls, nothing. For eight years she never once contacted me. It's like those six years together in high school counted for nothing. I can't believe she's back."

"You don't sound bitter at all."

"Why shouldn't I be? She deserted me. She completely cut off ties the moment her plane left Japan. What nerve to come back into our lives like this!"

He shoved his palm against her forehead.

"What!?"

"Grow up. You've been perfectly fine without her for the last eight years. You're 25, living independently and successfully. She probably had her reasons. I mean it, Kinomoto. Get over it," he repeated when her brows furrowed even more. "Look, let's go to dinner tomorrow with everyone and catch up. She really seemed happy to see us. And excited to see the rest of you. Just ask first, all right? Before you go assuming and judging and going crazy on her."

Sakura was silent, her pride unwilling to soften.

Syaoran shook his head. So typical of Sakura to hold a grudge and maintain her pride like this. The next stop was his, so he grabbed his bag from the ground.

"Call me if you decide to go to dinner." At that, he patted the top of her head and headed for the bus doors.

Ugh he made sense. But still. That one year after Tomoyo left, it really did feel like she had forgotten the seven of them, as though their memories and time together meant nothing. Maybe that was all that was riling her up now; her 18-year-old self that felt abandoned by her best friend.

At her bus stop, Sakura got off and walked to work. She grabbed the leftover bagel from her bag and finished it.

She worked for Clover, a thriving clothing company. It had never been her dream to work in the fashion industry; ironically, that had been Tomoyo's. But for some reason, as fate would have it, she ended up going after that dream too. And here she was now, a successful marketing manager at only 25.

"Morning, honey."

She turned around. Her sweet fiancé, with his jet black hair and dark green eyes and charming smile, was carrying a tray of coffee cups and a bag of donuts.

She smiled at the sight of him. She angled her head towards him when he leaned to kiss her cheek. "Hi honey. What are you doing with all that? Why are you doing errands so early in the morning?"

"Head honcho over at Finances came to visit and he called up a sudden meeting. I was the last to arrive to the meeting so they made me go." They entered through the automatic glass doors. "Maybe go to the bathroom first. Your hair's all over the place." He kissed her cheek again quickly and walked to the elevator. "I'm going ahead of you!"

"Okay," she waved him goodbye and darted to the first floor bathroom.

Sakura pulled her hair out of the ponytail and used her fingers to comb through her auburn hair.

So Tomoyo was back. And for good, Syaoran had said. That feeling of betrayal that she had felt so keenly the year after Tomoyo had left and broke off all communication with them came streaming back. But she couldn't deny that there was also a sting of curiosity in there too. Why now? After all these years? Had something happened? Surely something did. The Tomoyo she knew wouldn't have broken communication lines with her only best friends.

Muttering under her breath, she grabbed her phone, scrolled through her contact list and found Syaoran's name. _Count me in, _she typed and sent.

Then she fixed up her blazer, stared resolutely at her reflection once more, then walked out of the bathroom. Time to go to work.

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><p><em>AN: How's that for a new story? :) I hope you liked it! Let me know! _


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

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><p>Sakura looked through the huge pile of folders on her desk. She bit back a yawn as she opened the next one. Part of her job was to recruit the right models for the upcoming fashion show and pick six for the commercial photoshoot in two days. She blinked her eyes tightly a few times, trying to stay awake. She'd read through sixteen files already and scrutinized every little detail of every photo.<p>

When someone knocked, she straightened her back and stretched. Kohei came through the door with a few more folders in his hands.

Sakura groaned. "Ugh, don't tell me…"

"Sorry to do this to you. A few more applied for the photoshoot this morning," he said sympathetically. He came over behind her and massaged her shoulders. "Tired?"

She nodded and closed her eyes. "Mm, that feels nice. Thanks honey."

He bent down and dropped a kiss on the top of her head. "Let's go out for dinner tonight. We haven't done that in a while. Somewhere not so far so we can come back to work if we need to."

Sakura stood and turned around to face him. "Sure. What do you feel like eating?"

He moved his hands up and down her arms. "Uh…let's go for curry. But I've got a few more things to finish before 6. Is 6:15 ok?"

She nodded. "Fine with me."

They stood almost eye to eye, so it was easy to stare into his eyes. She stared into them now, grateful that he was there for her. They never failed to make her feel safe. It was one of the reasons why it had been easy to say yes to his proposal.

She had never before met a man who loved her as much as he did. Her mother often told her that it was better to marry someone who loved you more than you loved them, because that way, you would never have to worry about him cheating. And that was definitely the case with this one.

"You'll never cheat on me, will you honey?" She asked playfully.

He laughed. "I think you'd kill me if I did."

"Aw, you know me so well," she said as she hugged him.

:::

Two hours later, walking side by side, they held hands as they looked for a curry restaurant.

After dating for six months, Kohei had popped the question on the night of her birthday dinner. He'd brought her to an indoor garden of sakura trees and golden lights blinking all around them. When he took out the small box, she began to cry. And amidst the tears, she managed to say yes.

That was only three months ago. Kohei liked to move things along and Sakura was the type to follow, not take the lead. Though engagements usually lasted a year for most couples, theirs would only be five months long.

"That place looks good," he pointed to a restaurant.

"Let's go there."

When they walked inside, Sakura glanced around. She'd never been to the place before, but it seemed awfully close to Syaoran's company. She wondered fleetingly if he ever came here.

"Does this table work for you?" The waitress asked.

"Perfect," Kohei replied, pulling the seat back for Sakura.

"Ah!"

Kohei glanced up.

"It's Syaoran," she pointed to the brown-haired man sitting by the window on the opposite side of the room. Across from him was a blonde woman. Curious, Sakura turned to Kohei. "Can we go say hi?"

"Sure."

"Hey Li!"

Syaoran looked up and smiled. "Oh it's the green-eyed lovebirds."

"How's it going?" Sakura asked, eyeing the blonde not so subtly.

Knowing where Sakura's thoughts were heading, Syaoran said, "Mariko, this is Sakura, one of my best friends, and Kohei, her fiancé. Guys, this is Mariko, one of our new interns starting this year."

"Ohh, intern…" Sakura said with a smile. "Nice to meet you, Mariko."

"Hello, nice to meet you," she said, standing up and exchanging bows with them.

"You don't mind if we join you, right?" Sakura sat down on the chair beside Mariko.

"Well, it'd be rude to kick you out now that you've made yourself at home."

Ignoring him, Sakura pushed Kohei over to the seat beside Syaoran. "Sit down, honey."

"Sorry for intruding," he said apologetically.

"No worries."

Mariko leaned forward and smiled at Sakura. "You're best friends with someone this pretty, Syaoran?"

Sakura laughed with delight. "I like her!"

"Since how long ago have you been friends?" She continued.

"Uh…even before high school."

"That's amazing," Mariko murmured.

Without even looking at each other, they simultaneously said, "Not really," which got a laugh out of the other two.

"It is," she insisted. "I mean I lost contact with all my school friends eventually."

"Yeah I've only kept in touch with one guy from high school," Kohei said. "But you should meet the whole group. There are seven of them."

"Really?!" Mariko exclaimed.

"Actually…" Sakura began.

Knowing exactly what was coming next, Syaoran cleared his throat and looked away from her.

"There used to be eight of us, and we were always a really, really close group of friends, as in the type of friends who tell each other everything. And we experienced everything together, so you'd think people would value that friendship and those memories like they were gold, but hey you know, unfortunately not everyone sees it that way, especially _one _whohad a memory relapse or something after leaving for London, and for eight years never even once contacted us so we all thought she'd gone missing or maybe just completely disappeared from the face of the earth altogether, but actually, _actually_, it turns out she seemed to be fine all these years, and she's got all her limbs and she's still got her smile and her brain still works just fine, and how do we know that? By suddenly bumping into three of us and asking if we could gather everyone again for a nice, big reunion. All the while acting like those eight years meant nothing."

Her voice had gone up about two decibel levels in the span of that monologue.

Mariko's mouth slightly opened.

Kohei blinked. "What? Who?"

Sakura's face was red. Not only was there bitterness but now it had escalated to anger. Anger that had been buried for years and was now resurfacing.

"Who is this? How come I've never heard of her?" Kohei asked.

"Because she's been gone for eight years. And I'd forgotten about her," Sakura muttered. "Until this morning when Syaoran told me they saw her last night." She grabbed Syaoran's glass of ice water and downed it.

"I know you said you'd come to the reunion," Syaoran spoke up mildly, "but maybe it's best you skip this one out. For everyone else's sake."

"No. I'm coming."

"Can I come?" Kohei piped up.

"Yes. You can come and meet her yourself. You know," Sakura began, grabbing some bread from the basket and dipping it into Syaoran's plate of curry sauce. "If she didn't lose contact with me, I might've asked her to be my maid-of-honour."

"Stop eating my food and order your own," Syaoran snatched the last piece of bread hanging off of Sakura's mouth.

Uncomfortable with the sight of them sharing food, he took Sakura's arm and pulled her ever so slightly closer to him. "Yeah let's do that." He knew they were close, but he was never a fan of it.

Unaware, Mariko laughed. "You two seem like brother and sister."

"Everyone says that."

"There were eight of us who'd known each other since junior high, but I've known Syaoran since we were in kindergarten," added Sakura. "Our parents are best friends too. We're kind of stuck with each other for life, aren't we?"

"Unfortunately."

That earned him a slap on the head.

Growing interested in their relationship, Mariko inched forward and rested her elbows on the table. "That is so cool. I've always just seen that in movies but I've never met real-life best friends who are of the opposite sex. I mean, it just seems impossible."

As Kohei ordered for him and Sakura, Sakura continued munching the food from Syaoran's plate. "What is?" Syaoran asked absently as he slapped her hand away. "Stop it."

"For a good-looking man and a beautiful woman to be best friends without ever falling for each other."

Sakura suddenly stopped chewing the bread. Syaoran almost choked on the piece of broccoli he'd just thrown in his mouth. Kohei swiveled around.

Syaoran coughed several times.

"No, no, no," Sakura began the denial with a hand up. "Never. We're proof that it _is_ possible."

"Yes." Still recovering, he coughed again. "We've been friends for 20 years and I've never seen her as a woman. Ever. Believe me Kohei."

Missing the irritation that briefly flashed in Sakura's eyes, Kohei continued to scrutinize him.

"Hmm…that's interesting," Mariko said with a teasing smile.

Recovering, Sakura cried vehemently, "No, definitely not interesting! It's weird, ok? Don't ever say that again!"

"Yeah, yeah, let's move on and forget that conversation just happened," Syaoran said, shifting uncomfortably in his seat.

::::::

After Sakura explained in detail what had happened to Tomoyo all those years ago to Kohei, he decided to skip the reunion and give the group their private time. Sakura had protested, saying that it didn't really matter, but in the end agreed with Kohei's decision. Mostly because she anticipated going ballistic and making a scene and that was something Kohei did not have to see.

It was 5pm and Sakura stood outside her building door, waiting for a certain amber-eyed man to arrive and pick her up. Not known for her patience, Sakura grabbed her phone for the twentieth time and checked if Syaoran had called or texted. She had been waiting for ten minutes already. Just as she bit the bullet and phoned him, his car drove into the entrance roundabout in front of her building.

"Sorry I'm late," he said before she could say anything. "There was a fire at my building."

She sat at the passenger seat and sent him a dry look. "Really? That's your excuse?"

Innocently, he said, "What? Fire happens."

When they were on their way, he asked, "So you're calm now? You're not going to go crazy like you did at the restaurant the other night?"

"I didn't go crazy."

"…"

"That wasn't crazy."

"Just don't make a scene."

Sakura crossed her arms in front of her chest stubbornly. "Don't you think I deserve to be just _a little_ angry?"

"You do, but not in a public, happy occasion. Never the right place, Sakuchin."

Only two people ever called her by that nickname – Syaoran and Tomoyo. It came from Syaoran. Then Tomoyo had heard it once in junior high and used it too.

"Yes I know. I'll just ask some questions when the opportunity comes up. Right?"

"Right."

She rolled her shoulders as though preparing for a fight. "How's everyone getting there?"

"We're picking up Eriol. Hiro's carpooling with Taka. Naoko's on the train I think."

"Good. It's too bad Rika's in Australia."

"Send her a picture."

"Mm." She glanced out the window, tapping her fingers on the armrest to the music.

After a good block of silence, she spoke up again, "Sho?"

Sho was in turn Sakura's pet name for him. She was the only one in the whole world who ever called him that. It originated from their pre-kindergarten days when he tried teaching her his name and she couldn't mimic his pronunciation of his name so properly.

He glanced at her.

Sakura met his brief gaze. "Remember that night before Tomoyo left?"

He nodded.

"I'd never cried so much in my life. I was the last to say goodbye and hug her and we promised each other we'd stay in touch somehow. And I wondered for what, two years, what had happened. But nothing. Tomoyo meant a lot to me. And she threw it away just like that."

He'd been there to witness it all, so he took her hand now and squeezed it in comfort. "I know."

:::

About fifteen minutes later, they arrived at Eriol's apartment building and he was standing by the front gate. Though a ball of nerves himself, Eriol tried to be optimistic as he jumped into the backseat.

"Hey guys!"

"Long time no see, friend," Sakura greeted the navy-haired man. "How've you been? How's work?"

He squeezed her shoulder in warm greeting. "I'm good. Work is the same as usual, keeps me busy. How've _you_ been Kino? How are the wedding plans going?"

"Oh I'm great. The wedding plans are definitely going. I've been working with our wedding coordinator everyday to finalize everything, so it's been insane. I haven't had much of a break the last few weeks either."

"The fashion show is coming up right?" Syaoran asked.

"Yeah. I've been doing a lot of overtime. If Kohei and I didn't work together, I probably wouldn't see him until the wedding."

"Aw what a lucky guy," Eriol grinned. "Look at you getting hitched already. Man. It's still unbelievable. Can you believe it Syaoran!? Sakura, the youngest, the baby of the group, getting married."

"Yeah it's weird," he said with a head shake. "I see her every day and it's still weird."

"What's so weird about me getting married?" She remarked.

Known for not being able to express himself well, he just said, "It's just weird."

:::

Two minutes passed since Syaoran had parked the car. He glanced at his rearview mirror and caught Eriol releasing a breath. He turned to Sakura who was also trying to calm herself. How he ended up with the two people who were most stressed about this evening, he didn't know, but now he cleared his throat to get their attention.

"We're here, so…let's…go in."

"Right."

"Yeah."

Hopeless.

Syaoran led the trio into the restaurant and almost became nervous himself. The way they were acting, it seemed like they were walking into someone's funeral. He thumped their backs in support.

"Hey guys," Syaoran said first at the sight of Naoko, Hiro, and Takashi.

Eriol's stiff posture loosened visibly.

"Oh thank goodness," Sakura said with great relief as she plopped beside Naoko. "I was _so_ nervous. I thought she was here already."

While they all still kept in touch, over the years it had become more difficult to meet up as often as in their younger days. The last time they had gathered like this was maybe two months before.

"Look at that rock!" Hiro remarked. He said this the last time too when she had just gotten engaged. It wasn't that big.

Sakura laughed. "Stop it."

"You're actually glowing," Naoko said with a huge smile. "Can't wait for the big day, can you? I'd be going nuts if I were you."

"I've been so busy with a lot of things so the days are going by very fast," she admitted. "I am slightly going insane though. I don't get much rest."

Takashi walked behind the other three men sitting at the table. Resting his arms on Syaoran and Hiro's shoulders, he announced, "So I'm seeing Megumi again tomorrow night. That was a great goukon, wasn't it?"

"Only for you," Hiro muttered.

"Yeah…I'm never doing that with you losers again," Syaoran said.

Eriol remained quiet, preoccupied with thoughts of what may conspire tonight.

Taka shook Eriol slightly. "You okay man?"

"Yeah I'm fine," he answered absently.

"Hi everyone."

* * *

><p><em>AN: Hang on for the ride, folks. This is gonna be a long one! _


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

* * *

><p>Six heads whipped around.<p>

Tomoyo's heart was pounding and her body trembling. She kept her hands together in nervousness. With a big smile, she faced them. Her eyes roamed the room, studied each person, and then rested on Sakura. The guilt came rushing in like a torrent.

Her smile faltered a little when the girls didn't return her smile.

Then Hiro realized no one had spoken in about five seconds. He looked around quickly and caught sight of open-eyed stares. Syaoran had also realized the silence, and simultaneously, both got up and walked to Tomoyo.

"Tomoyo! Hey!" They exchanged quick hugs with her.

Takashi followed suit and hugged her tightly. "Oh man, never thought I'd see you again, Daidouji!"

Tomoyo laughed as she returned his hug. "Hi Takashi-kun. It's been so long, I know."

Syaoran threw Eriol a look, who then got to his feet in automatic response. He squeezed in between Takashi and Tomoyo, grabbing her for another hug.

"Hey Tomo."

A genuinely relieved smile lit her face. "Hi Eriol."

"It's good to see you again," he murmured.

"Me too."

Then, out of nowhere, a loud voice came booming from behind the men. "You… WERE ALIVE ALL THIS TIME?!" Naoko yelled.

Six pairs of eyes widened. In addition to the rest of the restaurant's guests looking over at them.

"I could slap you!" She cried again, marching over to Tomoyo. And just in front of her, she pulled her roughly into a tight hug. "Oh Tomoyo Daidouji, I could just slap you," she repeated in a softer voice. "But I'd rather hug you right now."

At that, Tomoyo felt a ball of tears rise up her throat. All sorts of complicated feelings continued to fill her heart, guilt still winning among them.

The six turned to Sakura who remained frozen in her seat. She didn't quite know what to say or do, and every second that she took figuring it out increased the tension in the atmosphere a bit more.

Tomoyo tried a smile. "Sakura," she began.

Like a deer caught in headlights, she stared back, her mind going a mile a minute. Even a "hey" wouldn't come out of her mouth.

Faster than anyone could notice, Syaoran found his way to Sakura's side and took her hand. He knew that she only went speechless like this when she was overwhelmed.

"Come on," he said quietly, pulling her up. Her hand was cold and clammy. Warming it up, he calmed her down, and as always, it did the trick.

Sakura finally smiled, albeit a half-smile. "Tomoyo, hi." She was really here. Alive. In the flesh.

Syaoran moved away. Tomoyo made the first move and hugged Sakura, who returned it awkwardly and quickly.

Hiro broke the tension and announced, "So who's hungry? I know I am!"

"So am I," Taka said. "Let's all sit down."

"You can sit here Tomoyo," Naoko said quickly, patting the seat beside her.

Grateful, she nodded.

The seating arrangement ended up with Hiro, Syaoran, Sakura, and Eriol at one side, Tomoyo, Naoko, and Takashi at the other. Relieved that she was sitting far away from her, Sakura relaxed. This way she could gather her thoughts without having those wary grey eyes on her.

When they were all finally served their meals, the atmosphere relaxed a bit more. Naoko and Tomoyo seemed to hit it off again. For Naoko, all was forgiven. Hiro and Takashi too had no problem forgetting the past. It was really just the other corner of the table that seemed to have a hard time making conversation with the purple-haired woman.

"London was amazing. The weather wasn't always nice, but I loved the atmosphere, the lifestyle, the fashion. Paris was only a train ride away, so I spent a lot of long weekends there. But enough about me," Tomoyo said, answering Hiro's question about life in Europe. "What's going on in your lives?"

"Oh I'm still in school," Naoko said with a shrug. "But I'm almost done."

"She's getting her PhD," Taka interrupted.

"Really?"

Blushing, Naoko shook her head. "I've studied so long that it doesn't feel like such an accomplishment, especially when you think about how everyone our age is having kids. Like Rika, who's still in Australia. She's got one little boy and another one on the way."

"What? When did she get married?"

"Two years ago. It was in Australia, so none of us were there," Takashi answered.

After eight years, everything was a surprise. But it surprised her more that Rika, unlike her, had kept in touch with the group all this time. Tomoyo squashed down the guilt that was resurfacing again.

"AND our very own Sakura's getting married in less than 2 months!" Hiro added, grinning proudly. "Look at that ring!"

Sakura looked up sharply. Tomoyo turned swiftly to her, their eyes meeting. Then, before she could stop herself, Tomoyo's gaze shifted visibly to Syaoran.

"You and-"

"No!" Sakura denied a bit too loudly.

Syaoran blinked.

Sakura composed herself, burying the anger threatening to come out. "His name's Kohei. I wanted him to join us tonight, but he thought it would be better without him."

"You should meet him! He's the male version of Sakura to a tee. Oh except that he never gets mad. So maybe not to a tee, but they are very similar in other ways. He's really nice and cute, like her," Naoko commented, returning to her pasta. "Oh this is good!"

"How did you meet him?" Tomoyo asked instead, trying to cover her tiny slip-up. At least no one seemed to have noticed, she thought with relief. Except Sakura.

"At work."

"Show her the ring," Hiro urged.

"Later."

Eventually, when the topic of Sakura's engagement died down, partly because of her lack of responses, the conversation went to Hiro and Takashi's long stretch of goukon attendances.

Syaoran took the opportunity now to elbow Sakura. "What was that about?" He whispered.

"What?" She asked in between bites.

"Why'd she look at me when-"

"How would I know?" Sakura snapped.

At her tone, he frowned.

"Let it go," Eriol suggested to Syaoran under his breath.

Very confused, Syaoran said, "But I don't get it."

:::

At the end of the night, the seven of them stood outside the restaurant. One stranger took their photo several times in front of the restaurant name. All were smiling and the photo showed a group of friends who had a great reunion. The real situation between the ex-besties, however, wasn't so cozy.

Tomoyo asked to have another gathering like this soon and most of them were open and agreeable. Eriol had opened up just a bit more too, finally able to exchange a few sentences with Tomoyo instead of one-word answers. It was only Sakura left who was still quiet, and who, for most of the night, asked no questions nor replied much.

When everyone began to separate ways, Taka and Hiro took Naoko with them. Syaoran and Eriol said their goodbyes to Tomoyo and began walking to the car parking lot. Sakura was about to follow the men, but stopped and turned around.

There _had_ been something she wanted to say to Tomoyo but she didn't want anyone else to hear it. Now seemed like the perfect time.

Tomoyo spoke first. "Sakura, I'm so sorry about earlier. I really-"

She put a hand up. "You disappeared for eight years. You have no right to assume anything."

Silenced and guilt-ridden, Tomoyo's gaze dropped to the ground. "I know. I'm sorry."

Her nerves fried, Sakura said, "Look, whatever I told you in the past, that was so long ago. Please forget it. It's all gone now. I'm getting married. So-"

"So you're over him?"

Sakura stared blatantly at her. "I'm marrying someone else. Of course I'm over him."

"Did you ever tell him?"

She was taken aback. "Why are you asking me that?"

Tomoyo shook her head, her eyes unable to meet Sakura's gaze. "I thought you would've. Someday I thought…you'd tell him and you would end up-"

"Anyway," Sakura interrupted loudly, uncomfortable with the conversation. "I'm going to go." Sakura turned and began walking away.

"Wait. Sakura. Please, wait." Tomoyo waited until Sakura looked back again, then she released a deep breath. "I came back for him."

Nothing could have prepared her for that. It took her a moment to process those words. "What?"

"If you're marrying someone else, then…you're okay with that. Right?"

In disbelief, in confusion, Sakura walked back to her, her eyes narrow. "Came back for who exactly, Tomoyo?"

"Syaoran."

* * *

><p><em>AN: Sorry this chapter is so short. The next one will be longer. More importantly though, secrets are coming out... so tell me what you think. =)_


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

* * *

><p>Syaoran walked to Sakura's door and knocked. And knocked again a few more times. When there was still no answer, he began banging. She opened the door violently after ten seconds of banging and Syaoran's fist landed squarely on her forehead.<p>

"Ah…"

"OW. What. Do You. WANT."

"Sorry. Really sorry." Syaoran pushed his way in and closed the door behind him.

He marched to the kitchen, opened her fridge, and grabbed an ice pack. Covering it with a hand towel, he went back to her, still standing by the door.

"Kohei called me at work and said he hasn't been able to reach you all day. What's the matter?"

"Ugh." Sakura walked to the living room and buried herself in blankets on the couch.

Syaoran followed and sat himself beside her. "Lovers' quarrel?" He offered lazily.

Sakura turned on the TV and scrolled through the channels. That went on for a while until Syaoran grabbed the remote from her and turned the TV off. He shifted her to face him and pulled down the blanket so he could see her face.

He studied her dismal expression and the way she refused to meet his eyes. She was definitely out of it. He wondered how long she'd been in this state.

"Look, you don't have to tell me what it is, but at least tell your husband-to-be, 'cos he's worried sick. You're spending the rest of your life with this guy, Sakuchin. You can't be hiding anything from him anymore."

"I know that. I'm just…"

"Just what?"

"Just…" She heaved a heavy sigh. "Sad." Sakura's bottom lip then jutted out.

Syaoran sensed the tears coming before they showed up in her eyes. He didn't ask anymore. He put his arm over her shoulders and pulled her to his side.

Burying her face in his shoulder, she let out some anger, some disbelief, some disappointment, and a bit of regret through tears.

Hearing those words from Tomoyo had been so painful. Such a simple sentence and yet she'd answered all the questions Sakura had wanted to ask.

That was why she left and never contacted them again. They loved the same guy all throughout high school. Yet Tomoyo had successfully kept it a secret. And eight years later, she came back. Not to reunite with them, not to rekindle any friendship with the group.

Only for him.

_So you're over him? _Out of all the questions she could have asked, she asked that.

With those thoughts, Sakura pulled away from him and went back to her corner on the sofa.

"Feeling better?" He grabbed some tissue from the box and passed it to her.

"Thanks."

"Are you ok?"

"Yeah." Sakura hiccupped. "The reunion was just really overwhelming. Seeing her was more overwhelming than I thought."

"I figured. I saw you two talking after the dinner. It seemed intense."

"Yeah."

"What was it about?"

"I don't want to tell you."

"Why not?"

"You said I don't have to tell you!"

"But now I'm curious."

"No."

"Tsk." Syaoran saw her phone sitting by the lampstand. He grabbed it and saw the twenty missed calls from Kohei. He bit back a smirk. The guy was so devoted, it was borderline lame. "Here, why don't you call hubby and let him know you're all right?"

"I was only absent from work one day," she murmured, taking the phone anyway. "Hi honey. I'm fine. Syaoran's here. Yeah, maybe I'm getting my period or something. No I'm okay, I'm good. No, please, just stay and do your work. We've got a deadline to catch. I'm coming back to work tomorrow so I'll see you then. Yes, I'm fine, don't worry," she insisted. "I'll see you tomorrow. Love you."

Syaoran stood up. "Well, my work here is done. I'm going home."

"Ok." Sakura stood up too and followed him to the door. "Thanks for coming and cheering me up."

"That's not for free. I expect banana bread from you tomorrow morning."

That got a small laugh out of her. "Fine. I'll make some tonight." She opened the door and let him out. She waved. "Bye."

She looked like a little kid with those puffy eyes and red cheeks. He couldn't resist and reached over and rubbed the top of her head, mussing her hair. "Feel better," he said before walking away.

Sakura couldn't help herself. Silently, secretly, she watched his fading form disappear down the street, and a heavy sadness that Tomoyo had brought back began to settle in her heart.

::::::

Tomoyo sat at the coffee shop, sipping her vanilla espresso and reading a book_. _She hadn't always liked reading, but spending all those years in London taught her to try new things and eventually she took on the persona of the city itself. While 26-year-old Tomoyo didn't look all that different from her 18-year-old counterpart, she was a very different woman.

When the door chime rang, she glanced up. Syaoran walked through and made his way into the place.

"Hey! I'm so happy you could make it."

"No problem, I'm glad you called." He bent down and hugged her briefly. "You seem at home in a coffee shop."

She laughed. "Yeah? Very Western of me."

"Nothing wrong with that. I'm going to order a drink. Want to share dessert?"

"Sure!"

"Any preferences?"

"Anything's good."

Syaoran nodded, then walked to the cashier.

She watched him as he stood there. It still made her wonder why Sakura never found the courage to tell him how she felt.

Senior high was when Sakura began to see him as more than a friend. And before Tomoyo realized it, she was following along too, much to her dismay.

But then again, Syaoran wasn't hard to love. He took care of them. He was a genuinely good guy with a good heart. Plus that handsome face. Girls swooned after him and he was oblivious to most of it all throughout high school. He never had a girlfriend. He studied hard in school and practiced hard in soccer. He was the guy everyone wanted and could never have.

When Syaoran came back, he brought along a warm, almond-covered white chocolate Belgian waffle on a plate.

"Great choice!"

"Thought you might like that. It's European," he grinned. "Here." He passed her a fork.

"Thanks."

"I didn't get to talk to you much at the dinner last week, so I'm glad I get this time with you now. What have you been doing all these years?"

So typical of Syaoran to push aside the spotlight and shine it on someone else. "Hm, well, I worked my butt off for a year to earn money, get some work experience, doing some part-time modelling and waitressing. Then I got into an art institute in England. Four years later, I graduated and got my degree. It was much easier to find a job right out of college than I expected, so I really lucked out on that. One of the companies that I did an internship with during my undergrad hired me as an assistant designer and I've been with them since. It's pretty amazing. They're expanding their fashion line to Tokyo, so I volunteered to help start it up."

"Wow. Wow. You really did it, didn't you? You didn't give up on your dream. And here you are." Syaoran shook his head, still in awe at the level of success and accomplishment that Tomoyo had achieved in a short amount of time. "I'm so happy to hear that, Tomo. I'm really proud of you."

She blushed. "Thanks Syaoran. Fashion's my life. But I mean, I still haven't quite reached my dream yet. I'm still an assistant designer," she grinned. "I want to have my own line someday. Hopefully soon."

"No doubt in my mind that's coming up for you. Cheers to you," he raised his cup of coffee and tapped it against hers.

"Thank you. So that's what happened to me all those years. What about you? How come you're not a pro soccer player right now?" She teased.

"Many, many reasons," Syaoran chuckled. "One being my father is still one of the most influential businessmen in China and he's got a huge company he's waiting to throw on my shoulders."

"Ah yes, the infamous Li Corporation."

"It hasn't disappeared in eight years, unfortunately," he smiled.

"You're a good son, Syaoran. Giving up a dream for your father's sake."

He shook his head. "Not really. All jokes aside, I like working for my dad and our family company. I see his vision and I support it. And it makes me happy to see him and my mom happy, so I have no complaints."

Tomoyo's heart warmed. He didn't change one bit.

"What about Sakura? She…was really quiet throughout dinner. Do you mind if I ask you how she's been doing?"

"Yeah I can tell you," he said, then cut a piece and threw it in his mouth. As he chewed, he managed to say, "What do you want to know? Sakura's Sakura. She hasn't changed. She still eats all my food and cries a lot and works too hard and gets mad really easily, sometimes for no reason."

She laughed at the quick, but concise description. "And her fiancé? What's his name again?"

"Kohei. He's a nice guy."

"How'd they meet?"

"A few years back. That's when he started working for the same company as Sakura. The guy's hilarious. I remember this one night when I was walking Sakura home and we bumped into him randomly. He was so drunk and out of it and he just blurted out, 'Sakura, I love you! Please go out with me!' Then Sakura yelled no right in his face."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It was priceless. He probably chased after her for a good year until she finally said yes. I admire him for going after her like that. I've never done that for anybody before. He really loves her."

Tomoyo held her mug in her hands. "How long have they been engaged?"

"Uh…" Syaoran thought for a moment, trying to recall the dates. "He proposed to her in Decem…no, January. Cos I had to help him set up the proposal scene. He really went all out for it, you know, like, found a hotel that had some fake sakura trees and got that all set up for her."

"You mean just this January?"

"Yeah."

"So they've only been engaged three months. And they're getting married in two months, right?" Tomoyo murmured.

"Yeah. It's going faster than the average engagement for sure, but," he shrugged. "Sakura doesn't seem to have a problem with it."

"How…" She hesitated to ask what she really wanted to know.

He met her gaze.

"How do you feel about it? I mean, you guys have grown up together your whole lives."

"Yeah no kidding." Syaoran leaned back on his seat, his cup in his hand. "I don't know, maybe it hasn't really hit me. It's only been a few months. I'm happy for her I guess." He glanced down at his cup.

"What is it?" She asked, noticing his reluctance.

He smiled ruefully. "It's probably just the big brother in me, but sometimes I wonder if she's just settling. Not to say that Kohei's not deserving of her, but…he's the first guy she's ever dated. I just don't…" He stopped and shook his head. "I don't know, never mind."

"Hmm." Tomoyo's gaze fell. "If I hadn't disappeared, I could've been there for her."

Syaoran studied her and saw the guilt plain on her face. The opportunity had come. "Why did you disappear like that anyway?"

Tomoyo paused, then leaned forward slightly on the table. "For what seemed like selfless reasons at the time, but seems so stupid now." She sighed then. "I'm really sorry for disappearing like that, Syaoran. There's no excuse."

"No need for apologies. I understand the feeling of wanting to be independent."

"It was really heartless of me though. I know I hurt everyone. Especially Sakura. I need to talk to her. Do you think you could help me out?"

Syaoran grinned. "Of course."

::::::

Sakura bit her fingernails. She was staring at the computer, but she wasn't exactly looking at the picture on the monitor. Memories of high school kept going through her mind.

Of all the times she shared with Tomoyo about her feelings, how she'd cried over Syaoran to Tomoyo, how she'd hoped for years that he'd return her feelings and was let down over and over and over again and was supported by Tomoyo the whole time.

And during all that time, Tomoyo had loved him too.

The knock on the door took her out of her trance. She looked up just as the door opened. Kohei walked in, a cup of hot coffee in his hand. "Hey honey. Thought you might need this."

Sakura smiled wearily. "Thank you. What time is it?"

"8. What time are you planning to stay here until?"

"Maybe another hour. I just have to finish up one more report." Sakura stood up and walked around her office, rolling her shoulders a few times.

Kohei pulled her to him. Rubbing her back, he said, "You're stressed out. Relax."

"I feel like my brain's going to explode. The fashion show is in less than a week. Syaoran's been bugging me about meeting Tomoyo, which I really do not want to do. The wedding coordinator keeps calling me every hour. Kamaura-san keeps popping her head in here to make sure I'm doing my work." Sakura pulled away from him, needing some breathing space. "I feel like I just need to take a weekend off."

"Okay. Why don't you do that? I'll even keep my distance," he said with a sympathetic smile. "I'll work on the fashion show and I'll figure it out with Aya-san for the wedding. Just take a 3-day weekend. Rest your brain."

Sakura studied him. "Really? Can I?"

He nodded. "You need it. Take it. I'll explain it to the bosses."

She hugged him tightly. "Thank you."

:::

Across the city, at the park near the seaside, Eriol jogged down a familiar route. From elementary to high school, he was in the track and field team and ran 3-10km a day. Running was an essential part of his life. It was his way of de-stressing and thinking over all the things running around in his head.

And now there was a particular violet-haired woman who'd consumed his mind for a good few weeks now. It was strange how one person could just suddenly shake up your world and you couldn't do anything about it.

He hadn't seen her since the reunion dinner, but they spoke on the phone a few times. She didn't look all that different, but she was different. He could tell. The way she spoke, the way she interacted with everyone. There was an air of confidence that she never had in high school. He was glad to see that.

And he remembered that moment, a small glance that spoke volumes, when Tomoyo thought Sakura and Syaoran were engaged.

A wry smile appeared on his face. The eight of them had unsuccessfully tangled themselves into love triangles without ever knowing it. At one point or another, Hiro liked Naoko, who liked Takashi. Takashi liked everybody, while Rika liked Takashi too. He, meanwhile, liked Tomoyo, who liked Syaoran. And Sakura liked Syaoran too. In time, those high school crushes dissipated and turned into deeper friendships and nothing ever came of it.

But how did he know all this? Everyone, for some reason, trusted him with their secrets. He called himself the secret keeper. He collected it all and kept it in a mental bottle and shoved it deep in the back of his mind. He was good at keeping a secret a secret.

Eriol stopped and glanced down. He was at 8.2km. Just a bit more to go, he decided, and kept running.

Half an hour later, he found his way to the parking lot. In sweats, he went to his car and took out a change of clothes and a bottle of vitamin water. Just as he was changing, his phone rang.

Pressing the phone between his ear and shoulder, he said, "Hello?"

"Hey, Eriol! How are you?"

In surprise, he stopped doing what he was doing and grabbed it with his hand. "Tomoyo?"

"Yeah, I was just thinking about you. Sorry, did I catch you at a bad time?"

"Uh…hold on a second." He put the phone on the hood and shoved his head and arms through the sleeves of a white sweatshirt. He took the phone back and went into the car. "What's up?"

"Oh not much. I just wanted to hear your voice for some reason… are you free to talk?"

A smile appeared on his face before he could stop it. "I'm just about to drive home now, but I can pick you up and we can talk if you want."

"Yeah? I'd like that."

He turned on the car GPS. "What's your address?"

::::::

Sakura walked out of the convenience store with a bag full of pastries. It was Friday night. The beginning of her three-day long weekend away from everything and everyone. And boy it felt glorious.

It didn't last long when she saw the tall, chestnut-haired man on the other side of the pedestrian crossing. He waved in acknowledgement. Slightly annoyed at the interruption, she waved back. When the lights changed fifteen seconds later, she crossed the road as he stood waiting for her.

"This city's too small," she remarked. "Where you off to?"

"Ah, to a bar. Eriol and Tomoyo are over there right now." Syaoran looked through the white bag in her hands. "Dinner?"

"Maybe."

"You and Kohei don't have any plans?"

She shook her head. "I need a break from…well, everything, so I'm going away this weekend."

Surprised, he said, "Oh yeah? This close to the wedding? Really?"

"Kohei said he'll take care of it. It's just three days," Sakura said in a defensive tone.

Syaoran studied her once more, trying to figure out where her brain was at. "Where you going?"

Sakura snorted. "If I didn't even tell Kohei, why would I tell you?"

"Are you staying in the country at least?"

"Of course."

"Fine. I better go. They're waiting for me."

She nodded. "Have fun."

He started to walk away, then stopped, realized something and turned around. "So are you meeting up with Tomoyo? You know, sometime?"

Sakura pursed her lips. "Um…I'd really rather not."

He threw her an 'are-you-kidding-me' look.

"Not anytime soon I mean," she amended.

He sighed heavily.

"What?" She asked innocently.

"Come on, Sakura, stop being so immature," Syaoran said now, his tone impatient.

Her back straightened. "Are you trying to pick a fight with me right now?"

He ignored that. "I'm really getting tired of your excuses. Tomoyo's trying to fix whatever she did wrong. Can't you be a grown-up and just face her?"

"I'll think about it," she repeated heatedly. "Why don't you just get out of here?"

They drilled holes into each other for two seconds, then five seconds. Then…

"Oh screw it." Syaoran bent down, grabbed Sakura's legs and hauled her over his shoulder like she was a sack of rice.

She gasped, then screeched, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

"You said you're not doing anything tonight. You have no plans. No excuses. We're going to that bar and you're gonna sit there and talk to Tomoyo and get everything out once and for all."

Facing his back, she began to punch it while her legs kicked around viciously. "PUT ME DOWN! RIGHT NOW!"

People openly gawked at the scene as Syaoran marched across town with Sakura over his shoulder. They were still bickering and Sakura was still fighting her way out of his firm hold even after five minutes.

With blood pooling at her head, her face was turning redder and redder by the second. "Oh I could KILL YOU. Are you CRAZY?!"

After another five minutes, Syaoran's right shoulder was getting tired, but he just held onto her legs tighter. Sakura, on the other hand, was losing energy to fight back. Her legs stopped kicking but she was still squirming.

"I'm not even dressed properly," she managed to bark at him.

"It doesn't matter."

"Argh just put me down! You've already dragged me down five blocks. I'll walk the rest of it."

When Syaoran finally leaned forward and put her down, he looked at the tomato-faced Sakura. Her hair was a bit of a mess, her clothes not level.

And it wasn't a surprise to him when it came.

She swung her elbow back then suckerpunched his left jaw.

When he recovered from the hit, he touched his lip and saw the blood on his fingers. "Wow," was all he could say.

She let out several breaths of anger, puffing. "I can't believe you."

"Well. We're here, so no turning back now," he said, grimacing. His jaw began to throb.

He turned her around and shoved her forward through the doors.

This was so not how she imagined her Friday night would be. Syaoran was turning a much-needed weekend into a nightmare by the second. Throwing insults at him while loud music burst out of the speakers, he pushed her through the crowd. They walked to a table at the far back of the bar, where the source of half her stress was currently sitting with Eriol.

Eriol and Tomoyo both stared in shock at the sight of Sakura in leggings and an old sweatshirt and Syaoran behind her, digging his fingers into her shoulders.

Sakura pulled away from him violently.

"Uh…" Eriol started.

"Sakura." Tomoyo stood. "You're here."

Eriol walked towards them. "What are you doing here Sa— Did you just get into a fight?" He demanded when he caught sight of Syaoran's purple cheek and cut lip. "What happened?"

"I brought her here," Syaoran muttered. "Grab me some ice would you?"

Confused and eyeing the two, he said, "Sure."

"Sakura. Hi. I'm glad you're here," Tomoyo began. "Please. Sit down."

Sakura was still frowning as she slowly walked to the table and sat across from Tomoyo. "Thanks."

When Syaoran followed Sakura to the table, she threw another evil look at him. He covered her whole face with his hand and shoved her further into the booth so he could sit down beside her. She pulled her face away from his grip.

Tomoyo repeated Eriol's question. "Syaoran, what happened to your face? Your cheek…"

"A crazy psycho did it," he said obnoxiously.

"Do you want one on the other side?"

Eriol came back with a bag of ice chips and some cotton balls. "Here," Eriol passed them over to Syaoran as he sat beside Tomoyo. "Which crazy psycho did that?"

"There's only one crazy psycho in here." Syaoran pressed the ice bag against his face and bit his tongue to prevent from groaning.

Tomoyo and Eriol looked blankly at Sakura, who didn't look one bit remorseful for punching him. She grabbed some fries sitting on the table and shoved them into her mouth.

The bar was loud and people were watching a sports ame on TV. It wasn't exactly the best location for conversation, but Sakura at least thanked her stars she wasn't alone with Tomoyo. Despite the fact that almost two weeks had passed since their last encounter, Sakura still couldn't quite figure out what to say or how to respond to her presence.

Syaoran pressed the cotton ball on his bleeding lip and pulled it back to look at the evidence. "Aw man. I'm gonna have a swollen lip for days and a friggin' purple face. Thanks Sakura. Thanks a lot."

"I didn't want to come here and you took me against my will!" She threw back.

"Hey," he pointed his index finger at her, "I'm doing you a favor," he argued back. When she refused to back down, he gave up. "Whatever. I need a drink." He got up and walked away from the table irately.

Eriol stared after him, then turned back to Sakura. "What'd he do?"

"He threw me over his shoulder!" She furiously munched on the fries.

"Why would he do that?"

"Because I'm going away for the weekend and he wants me to talk to you before I do that."

"Well that's my cue." Eriol disappeared after Syaoran quickly.

Left alone, Tomoyo and Sakura sat with each other in uncomfortable silence. Then, after a really long minute…

"I'm sorry." Tomoyo blurted out first. "It's my fault that he dragged you in here like that," she began, wringing her hands in obvious discomfort. "I just wanted to talk and clear things up. We haven't had a chance to talk properly, and…I haven't said sorry."

At that, Sakura looked up, eyeing her.

She released a breath, then bowed low in apology. "I'm really sorry. I'm sorry for everything."

Crossing her arms in front of her chest, Sakura said, "After what you said that night, I have a vague idea why you did, but please. Enlighten me."

Tomoyo sat up. She took a long moment to figure out what to say. Trying to channel in sympathy, Sakura waited without complaint.

"You know, I really thought things would change between you two after graduation," she murmured. "I was rooting for you. Every time I cheered you on, I meant it. It hurt me, but I loved you. You have to believe that, Sakura. It's just…remember senior year? Syaoran and I were voted as class leaders. We spent a lot of time together, just him and I. Things changed. I started liking him. And I couldn't tell anyone ex…" Tomoyo glanced over at the bar, where Eriol and Syaoran sat. No, she wouldn't drag Eriol into this. She looked back at her fingers. "If I told you, I would've hurt you. And I couldn't do it. And… I still planned on going to London. I knew I wasn't coming home for a while." She shrugged helplessly. "But the thought of you guys becoming a couple someday really broke me. I decided that, if and when you did end up together, I didn't want to hear it. I didn't think I could handle it."

"So… you cut everybody off."

Tomoyo nodded guiltily.

After a while, Sakura said quietly, "You didn't have to."

Tomoyo's gaze rose and met her eyes. "It was a young and stupid decision. Selfish of me, immature of me. I know that. I regret it. But I can't go back in time to change it."

"But you told me you came back for him, Tomoyo. Not to reconcile our friendship. For him."

"I said that to get your attention," Tomoyo argued softly. "You weren't listening to me. I had to say something…to get you to stop and look at me."

She didn't know whether that was true or a lie.

"Look…" Tomoyo sighed heavily. "I still love him. I wont deny that. But I really missed you. And I wanted to see all of you again. I imagined it for years…what it would be like to come home and see you all again. I imagined how I'd apologize and fix everything." Then a few tears escaped the corners of Tomoyo's eyes. "I'm really sorry."

Sakura watched her again, then sighed. She got up and went over to Tomoyo's side of the booth. "Come here."

She enveloped her in a hug. And Tomoyo burst into more tears. Sakura rubbed her back sympathetically. When Tomoyo pulled away, wiping her face, Sakura spoke.

"I forgive you."

Tomoyo looked up.

Sakura smiled this time, reaching forward to wipe away a stray tear on Tomoyo's cheek. "That was a pretty good apology. I'm sorry too. For being so immature and avoiding you like I did," Sakura said, sitting beside Tomoyo. "Can I ask you just one thing though?"

"Please."

"So you still love him… why?"

"Good question." Tomoyo stopped, and a small, sad smile appeared on her face. "I thought I was over him. But…after two failed relationships, I stopped and reflected for a long time. He came back to my mind. I realized a year ago that I regretted it; not ever telling him and just giving up so easily."

A lot had happened in eight years. A lot of heartache and frustrations on Sakura's part too. She had made the decision to give up and forget two years ago, and she stopped entertained those thoughts again since. And now, though Tomoyo's confession was stirring something in her, she put a lid on it right away.

"And you want to tell him how you feel, right?"

Tomoyo looked up. "Mm…if…when," she amended, "the right moment comes."

"Then…" Sakura took her hand. "I guess it's my turn to cheer you on."

* * *

><p><em>AN: Thanks for your reviews! Reading them makes me so happy. As promised, this was quite a long chapter, only to compensate for the last one. What'd you think? =)  
><em>


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

* * *

><p>After peeking at them from about half a room away, Eriol went back to Syaoran, who was sitting at the bar with a bottle of beer in his hand. "Looks a lot better than half an hour ago," he gathered, sitting beside Syaoran. "How's your cheek?"<p>

"Still hurts. She always did punch like a pro."

"You're a good friend," Eriol said, patting Syaoran's arm.

He let out a dry chuckle. "I'm the best friend anybody could ever have. So, how are you and Tomoyo?"

"Nothing there," was the quick response.

"Cos you haven't done anything about it," Syaoran remarked. "You should."

When Eriol didn't respond, he stood up. Eriol took his drink with him and followed after Syaoran.

:::

The four exited the bar at half past midnight. With Eriol and Tomoyo living in the opposite side of the city to Syaoran and Sakura, the pairs separated their ways after exchanging some hugs.

Sakura, feeling much lighter and less stressed than she did hours ago, walked as though on air ahead of Syaoran. He, on the other hand, battled sleepiness and a growing headache. He had drunk more than usual.

He closed his eyes momentarily as they walked down the street.

"That was such a good night," Sakura then announced. "I owe you an apology and a huge thank you."

He sighed. "Yeah you do. I'm gonna take a taxi."

She turned around. "What? Why?"

"I might pass out any minute."

She went back to him, put his left arm around her shoulders, and wrapped her right arm around his back. "Poor baby. I'll make sure you get home safe."

"You punch me and then you help me. Do you hate me or love me?" He asked, his eyes barely open.

"I only punch the people I love."

"That's twisted."

She chuckled.

They walked along the empty sidewalk beside the park, with only the occasional streetpole lighting up the pathway. There were a few cars passing them, but no other person walked down the street.

"I have a question."

"Hm?"

"Do you want to get married someday?"

"Sure. When the girl of my dreams shows up."

Her interest piqued, she glanced up at his face. He was practically out of it. "Who's the girl of your dreams?"

"What?"

"What does she look like?"

"Uh…" He didn't talk for a good five seconds, and then, "I can't remember right now."

She laughed again. "Okay." Sakura looked up at the starlit sky. It was a nice night. Feeling the gratitude fill up inside her, she let it out. "Thank you for knowing me better than I know myself, Sho. If you didn't do what you did today… I probably would never have fixed things with Tomoyo."

When he didn't reply, she looked at him again. He was slightly snoring. That was why his weight had gotten heavier. They still had a long way to go. It was probably best to take a taxi, she figured. She flagged one down and managed, with the driver, to position Syaoran properly in the car.

She followed him inside, then gave the driver Syaoran's address.

Half an hour later, Sakura stood in Syaoran's living room, breathless. It had been strenuous and not at all easy to get him on the futon, with his shoes off, and his head lying close to an empty bowl. She grabbed an extra blanket from his closet, a pillow from his bedroom, and settled herself on his couch.

Though this wasn't how she had expected her long weekend to start, it was definitely better. _Tomorrow I'll make him a big breakfast_, was her last thought before she fell fast asleep.

::::::

Syaoran woke up feeling like crap. He opened his eyes, squinting, trying to figure out how he'd gotten home and what happened the night before. Lifting his head, though, brought on a wave of pain. He cursed as flashbacks of the night before came roaring back.

He got up from the futon and managed his way to the bathroom. He looked at his reflection and studied the dark purple bruise beautifully blooming at his left jaw. Ten minutes later, he got out, feeling slightly better for puking.

He walked into the kitchen and from the corner of his eye, saw something on his couch. He did a double-take. It was Sakura still snoring away. Syaoran looked up at the clock. It was quarter past 11. He walked over to the couch.

"Oi Kinomoto," he said, nudging her bum with his foot. "Wake up."

She just grumbled a random sound in response.

He looked at her uninterestedly for another moment, then went to the kitchen to make brunch. Twenty minutes later, when he'd finished cooking the eggs, vegetables, and rice, he heard a loud groan.

"Where am I?" She muttered, then half a second later, "Oh yeah."

"You want brunch?" He called out from the kitchen.

She gasped.

Faster than he could blink, she came darting into the kitchen. "I was going to make you breakfast!" She cried. "Stop cooking!"

He looked at her blankly. "Great timing," his tone dripping with sarcasm. He was placing food onto plates and scooping rice into bowls.

Sakura gasped again. "Oh my gosh your face! I ruined your beautiful face." She went right up to him.

"Ow," he said when she touched it gingerly. She touched it again, pressing it a bit more. "Ow. Ow! Stop. Get away from me." He pushed her aside.

"You should put ice on that," she suggested worriedly. "It's turning black…"

He put down the plates he was carrying, grabbed her shoulders and pushed her forcefully onto a chair. "Just sit there."

"I really wanted to make you breakfast," she complained, pouring juice into her glass. "I really did. Do you believe me Sho?"

"No."

"But it's not my fault your sofa's so comfy. It's way more comfortable than my bed. Sorry."

He grabbed some napkins from one of his cupboards. "Then you're making dinner tonight."

At the suggestion, her face lit up. "Ok! Ok I can do that. Oh everything smells great. Thanks for cooking."

"No problem."

Sakura waited patiently until Syaoran sat down across from her. Then she put her hands together and said, "Itadakimasu!"

"Itadakimasu."

Then remembering the night before, she glanced back up. "Do you have a hangover?"

"A little. I already puked some."

"Good."

"I thought you were going away for the weekend."

Sakura bit into her toast. "Mm. I'm still planning to go for a drive up north and go to an onsen or something, maybe go hiking… I'll go tomorrow and stay overnight. Tonight I'll make your dinner."

His brow rose. "You could make me dinner another time."

She shook her head. "No I want to. I feel bad for…mistreating you, for lack of a better word."

"I'm glad you know that."

"I was so mad and you know I only see red when I'm mad. But you know me so well and you know how stubborn I can get. I would never have talked to her again if you didn't force me last night. So I'm really thankful too. For what you did for me and Tomoyo."

At that, Syaoran grinned. "Am I a great friend or what?"

"You definitely are. So what are you doing today?"

"Why?" He shoved a spoonful of rice in his mouth.

She shrugged. "If you're not doing anything, let's spend the day together."

"Why?"

"This might be the last time we can spend some quality time together, without anyone else, just you and me. After this weekend, I'm back to work, to the wedding, to preparing for married life with Kohei."

A strange feeling coursed through him. That hadn't occurred to him at all. Not until she said it just now.

After several moments of silence, she looked up. "What?"

He blinked. "Huh?"

"You're staring into space."

"Uh…anyway, you make a good point. Let's hang out today."

Smiling quizzically, she said, "Okay. What do you want to do?"

"Up to you."

"Hmm…why don't we go for a drive? Let's go visit our old schools!"

"Why? That's boring," he mildly complained, eating the last bit of food on his plate.

She drank a sip then put the glass down. "You _just_ said, 'up to you.'"

"Yeah but..." When he couldn't think of any other idea, he shrugged. "Fine, but you're washing the dishes."

Sakura beamed. "Yay."

::::::

"What's here?" Syaoran asked as he parked the car at the parking lot of Tomoeda Elementary School.

"Oh just our memories. Come on."

She got out of the car and breathed in deeply the smell of old wood and pine. Because it was a Saturday, the school was empty. She walked across the parking lot and through the open gates that led to the building. She'd walked more than a thousand days through those gates.

Syaoran followed after her, his hands in his pockets. Walking through the gates, those memories of his childhood spent with the woman walking ahead of him came involuntarily to mind.

**::: 17 years ago :::**

_Eight-year-old Sakura walked beside eight-year-old Syaoran along the street connecting their neighborhood to the elementary school. It was only a ten-minute walk and yet she was practically sleep-walking two minutes in. In her opinion, 8:30am was much too early to start school._

_She began slowing down as the path to Tomoeda Elementary began to slope upwards. This was around the time Syaoran had to put a hand under her arm and drag her mindlessly with him._

_"Come ooon, wake up!"_

_"Okay…" was the half-hearted reply. "Can you give me a piggyback?"_

_"No way! You're heavier than me."_

_That woke her right up. "Am not!"_

_"You are. All you eat is candy and chocolate."_

_"No I don't!"_

_"When you come over, that's all you eat. And I've seen you steal my cookies."_

_"No I don't! I'm going to tell Oba-chan you're making fun of me again," she cried, slapping his arm repeatedly._

_"Hey Syaoran!" A group of boys came from behind. "Want to play tag at the playground?"_

_Forgetting Sakura entirely, he let go of her and went to them. "Yeah!"_

_"You're it!" One boy cried, then the four of them darted off into the school grounds._

_Sakura was left alone just outside the gate, staring after them with disbelief. "You're mean, Syaoran Li!" She yelled._

_One girl from Sakura's class passed her by and waved. "You okay Saku-chan?"_

_"I'm fine. Can I eat lunch with you today, Mika?"_

_Mika smiled. "Sure! But don't you and Syaoran-kun share lunch?"_

_"Not today!" She replied indignantly._

_"Okay. Do you want to play in the playground before we go to our classroom?"_

_Sakura shook her head firmly. She took Mika's hand. "Let's go to the big tree instead. I'll be a princess and you can be a queen."_

_Mika's eyes lit up. "Okay!"_

_While they played by the tree, forming exaggerated stories about kingdoms and princesses and evil goblins, they began to run around, chasing after each other. Not noticing the tree root sticking out of the ground, Sakura accidentally slid her foot through and fell hard on the dark soil. Scratching her knee against the rocks and soiling her uniform, Sakura cried out._

_Mika gasped. "Saku-chan! Are you okay?"_

_Mika took Sakura's hand and helped her to her feet. Sakura's bottom lip was quivering. Tears pooled her eyes. Not sure what to do, Mika glanced over at the playground several feet away._

_"Syaoran-kun!" She yelled._

_Though in the middle of tag, he turned around at his name._

_"Syaoran-kun!" She repeated._

_Impatient, he called back, "What?"_

_"Saku-chan's hurt!"_

_"Time out," he then hollered at the other boys. "I'm out!"_

_He ran towards the crying mess that was Sakura Kinomoto. She was hiccupping between tears._

_"What happened?" Syaoran pulled away the arm covering her face. "Your uniform's all gross! Are you okay?"_

_Sakura cried even harder._

_"And your knee's bleeding. Geez Sakura, be more careful next time. Thanks Yamamoto, I'll take her to the nurse."_

_Mika nodded._

_Syaoran put his arm around Sakura's shoulder. "You'll be fine. Stop crying."_

_"My knee hurts. And you said my uniform looks gross," she managed to say while sniffling._

_"We'll go to the bathroom and clean it up, ok? Stop crying," he urged._

_"Okay. Thanks for taking me to the," she hiccupped, "nurse, Sho."_

_Pitying her, he patted her head and said, "Anytime, Sakuchin."_

**::: Now :::**

When they stood in front of what used to be the big tree, Syaoran suddenly hooked an arm around Sakura's neck and pulled her against him. Surprised, she looked up at him.

"What?"

"I just remembered a funny incident involving you tripping and me taking you to the nurse."

"Which time?" She asked with a dry smile, then looked back down. "I'm kind of sad it's gone. I spent a lot of time making up stories around that big old tree." A small monument now stood in its place. "Let's take a picture here."

"Ok."

She took out her camera and turned it around. "Can you take it? Your arms are longer."

Keeping one arm around her, he centered the camera between them. "Ready?"

Sakura rested the side of her head against his, their temples resting on each other, and quickly showed the peace sign. She smiled just before Syaoran pressed the button. Then Sakura grabbed the camera from him and looked at the picture. Syaoran smiled that perfect smile of his.

"The picture looks ok?"

"Mm. Looks great. Let's go."

"Junior high school next?" He asked as they began to walk back to the parking lot.

"Yup."

It had been a long time since her heart felt that oh-so-familiar ache.

* * *

><p><em>AN: _Sorry this took a bit longer to release! Merry Christmas, everyone! =)


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

* * *

><p>Tomoyo walked into a supermarket with a list in her hands. When she turned a corner, she saw a familiar face at the very end of the aisle.<p>

Naoko? Just then, the woman glanced her way and made eye contact. They waved and walked towards each other down the aisle. Behind her was a man Tomoyo didn't recognize, but he seemed like the studious, cute type.

"Hey!" Naoko hugged her.

"Hi! How are you?"

"I'm great. I'm glad to bump into you! Tomoyo, this is Kohei, Sakura's fiancé." Naoko pulled Kohei forward. "Kohei, this is Tomoyo. Sakura probably told you all about her."

He somewhat shook his head, then laughed awkwardly. "No, not really, but hi, it's nice to meet you."

Tomoyo laughed. "That's all right." She shook his hand. "Nice to meet you."

"You just came back, right?"

"Yes, from London, less than a month ago."

"Kohei asked me to help him cook some of Sakura's favorite dishes," Naoko explained, showing the basket Kohei was carrying. "Isn't he such a sweetie?!"

"Aw! That is really sweet. Where is she by the way?"

Kohei answered, "oh she decided to take the weekend off."

"Oh right! I saw her last night. It was really good," Tomoyo added when Naoko sent her a surprised glance. "We patched things up between us."

"Thank goodness!"

"Mm. But she never mentioned why she wanted the weekend off. Do you know why, Kohei?"

Huh. He'd never heard from Sakura about this meeting with Tomoyo. It seemed like a pretty big deal if she forgave her during that meeting.

When he realized the girls were still looking at him expectantly, he blinked. "Oh, she was getting stressed about everything, you know. Wedding and work and so on… I told her to take a break, but she'll be back on Monday night. So you said you saw her last night?"

Surprised, Tomoyo nodded. She thought Sakura would've told him. "Yeah, at a…bar. Well, it was supposed to be just Eriol, Syaoran, and I, but Syaoran kind of…dragged her in without her consent," Tomoyo answered with a small laugh. "You know, the two of them, they're a funny duo. They've been inseparable since they were babies, so they know each other really well. And Syaoran's the only one who can make her do something she doesn't want to do, but of course, that didn't happen so easily."

"She punched him," Naoko concluded.

"Mmm," she agreed with a long nod.

"Yeah. It's too bad you didn't know them in high school, Kohei," Naoko said with a slightly sympathetic smile towards him. "Being around the two of them was always so entertaining."

"Yes."

"Filled with violent outbursts, from Sakura of course, and sarcasm from the other one. And a lot of trips to the nurse's office."

Tomoyo laughed. "It doesn't seem like that relationship dynamic has changed much over the years."

"Yeah I agree completely. If it's not one, it's the other getting hurt." At Kohei's facial expression, Naoko quickly added, "But, but they love each other like brother and sister, so don't feel threatened or anything."

Kohei laughed then, albeit a little uncomfortably. "Oh I know."

"Yeah. And I mean, I think it's a good thing that Sakura has never gotten angry with you, because let me tell you, it is THE ugliest side of her. For sure! It's just scary," Naoko said plainly. "Right Tomo?"

Tomoyo, who had been studying Kohei's reactions to Naoko's words, wondered what exactly was going through his mind. "Yeah. Angry Sakura is definitely a force to be reckoned with."

"Huh."

"Though I'm sure once you're married, you'll see that at some point…"

Not entirely sure what she thought of him, Tomoyo decided to cut this little meeting short. "Anyway, I should probably continue with my grocery shopping. Good luck with the home-cooking. It was really good to meet you, Kohei. When you see Sakura again, please say hi to her for me."

"Sure. Nice meeting you too."

"Naoko, let's have dinner soon?"

Naoko grabbed her hands. "Yes! Just call me! I'm free anytime."

"Okay. Bye!"

:::

They arrived at the front gates of Tomoeda Junior High. From where they were standing, nothing seemed to have changed. The buildings, the trees, the field, the school uniforms – all were the same. There were students here and there, some in their school uniforms, others in their sports clothes.

They walked into the school and stopped in front of the field to watch a soccer game unfold.

After some time, Syaoran chuckled beside Sakura. "I like that kid," he pointed to one who was eagerly running after the soccer ball down the length of the field without stopping even for a moment. "I'd pick him for my team."

Sakura had witnessed the very first time that Syaoran had ever stepped foot on the soccer field. They were only seven at the time, but looking back now, she'd never seen him so happy. And every single time after that, watching Syaoran on the field was like seeing a person do what they were meant to do in life.

Her arms crossed, she said, "You were always amazing at soccer."

"It's easy to be good at something you love doing. I remember feeling like there was nothing else in the world I would rather do. I felt that every time I played a game."

"You know," she began thoughtfully, "I still don't fully understand why you never tried the professional athlete route. You were more than good enough. Even the coaches were urging you to pick a university known for its soccer team. And your dad never forced you to take over the business."

"It crossed my mind. For like a minute," he amended when she shot him a 'you're-totally-lying' look. He laughed. "I don't know, it wasn't a hard decision to pick my dad's business over soccer. I just wanted to play soccer, not make a career out of it. Plus, I'm sure athletes get a load of pressure and spotlight that sometimes takes the fun out of sport. And I'm not a fan of either."

"That's true. You were never the type to go in front of the class and show off."

"My dad always said, 'if you're good at something, don't brag about it or talk about it. Just show it.'"

The soccer ball began rolling fast towards them. Syaoran stepped forward and kicked it back to the boys. His kick was precise and strong and made the boys go "Wow!" Sakura clapped loudly and maybe a bit obnoxiously, which made Syaoran bonk her on the head.

He grabbed her arm and dragged her away. "Let's go."

Amused by his embarrassment, she just laughed. "Are you sure you don't want to join them, Sho?"

**::: 13 years ago :::**

_"Good morning, everyone, and welcome to your first day in Tomoeda Junior High School. I will be your homeroom teacher this year. You can all call me Hamada-sensei. Many of you don't know each other, so our first activity before we go to the opening ceremony is to do a quick self-introduction to the person beside you. You have five minutes. Please begin!"_

_Twelve-year-old Sakura turned to the girl sitting beside her. Her eyes widened at how long and purple her hair was. "Wow! You're so pretty!"_

_The girl blushed heavily. "Thank you."_

_"Ah, I'm Sakura Kinomoto." She bowed. "Yoroshiku onegaishimasu!"_

_"I'm Tomoyo Daidouji! Yoroshiku onegaishimasu. Um, you can call me Tomo if you want."_

_"Ok! And you can call me Sakura," she smiled brightly. "So what kind of stuff do you like to do for fun?"_

_"Hmm… I really like drawing clothes, especially dresses!"_

_"Really? Can I see some of your drawings sometime?"_

_"Sure! What about you, Sakura?"_

_"I love desserts. My mom's teaching me how to bake now, so she's going to first teach me how to bake cookies. When I make my first batch, I'll give you some, Tomo. What's your favorite kind of cookie?"_

_"Really? You'll make me some?" Hearts in her eyes, Tomoyo forgot her shyness and clutched onto Sakura's hands. "You're so kind, Sakura."_

_Sakura merely laughed. "What's your favorite type of cookie?" She repeated._

_"Oh…" she blushed, letting go and putting her hands behind her. "I like peanut butter cookies."_

_"Then that's what I'll make first! AH. Second. Sorry!" Sakura put her hands together in a sign of apology as she realized her mistake. "I already promised Syaoran I'd make my first batch of cookies for him and he likes white chocolate chip cookies."_

_"Syaoran?" Tomoyo's head slanted in question. "Is he your…boyfriend?" She whispered the last word._

_"Ew no! He's a childhood friend. Over there," she pointed to the back of the class, right by the back door._

_Meanwhile, oblivious to anyone else's conversation, Syaoran was enjoying his chat with his seatmate, who happened to be the navy-haired, glasses-wearing Eriol Hiiragizawa._

_"I totally saw you at the elementary school meet last year," Syaoran said, pointing at him knowingly. "You won the 100m dash! I remember thinking, 'man that guy is FAST!'"_

_Eriol beamed, making a fist and raising it high. "I worked my butt off for months to improve my time for the 100m."_

_"Are you joining the track and field team in this school then?"_

_"Yeah, but I hear it's pretty intense. I might switch to long distance, I don't know yet. What about you Li? What are you planning to join?"_

_"Soccer's the only sport I ever want to do in life."_

_"Did I hear soccer?! Who's joining soccer?" A boy from the other side of the classroom, by the window to be exact, demanded. A small, scrawny kid wearing an oversized uniform came interrupting their conversation. "Hiro Nogawa is the name! You? You?"_

_"Eriol Hiiragizawa."_

_"Syaoran Li."_

_"Syaoran, you and me, I'm with you on soccer. Want to practice everyday after school until tryouts?"_

_"Yeah, that's an awesome idea! Are you any good?"_

_At that, Hiro put a hand on Syaoran's shoulder to calm him down. With an air of seriousness he said, "Let me just warn you now. I…have never played soccer before."_

_Both boys dropped their heads as if someone hit them over the head with a bowl._

**::: 12 years ago :::**

_Fourteen-year-old Sakura and Tomoyo sat by a wall and watched the boys of the same grade play basketball. The two bonded over their dislike for sports and like for athletic boys. And as was often the case when they were put together, they shared stories about boys from their class, from other classes, from different sports teams._

_"I think Nishihara-kun likes you, Sakuchin. He's always looking at you whenever we pass his class," Tomoyo said._

_"You think so?" Sakura brought her knees to her chest. "Maybe he's looking at you Tomo. You're way prettier than me."_

_"Don't say that. That's not true." She pulled on Sakura's arm playfully. "See, see?! He's looking at you right now!"_

_Sakura looked back at the basketball court. Nishihara Kaito was looking at her. Their eyes met for longer than a second when he looked away. She rested her chin on her knee. He was okay, she thought._

_But he wasn't as cute as Yanagi-kun, who was playing for the other team. Of course, Yanagi Shun was one of the most popular boys in school and everyone thought he was cute. She didn't stand a chance with him. He never looked in her direction._

_"When does our class play?" Tomoyo asked._

_Sakura looked up at the massive chart hanging on the wall. It detailed the entire tournament. "I think they're playing the winner of this game next."_

_On Sports Day, every class was divided into eight groups and each group participated in a sports tournament. Sakura and Tomoyo were in the girls' volleyball tournament, Rika in the girls' handball, Naoko in the girls' soccer, Takashi and Eriol in the boys' basketball, and Syaoran and Hiro in the boys' soccer tournament. For the whole day, every class played against each other in the different sports, and at the end of the day, a special award would be given to the class that won the most games._

_"Hey guys!"_

_Two girls from behind came running towards Sakura and Tomoyo, slightly out of breath._

_"Are they playing yet?" Naoko demanded, plopping down beside Sakura._

_"No, in a few minutes. The game's almost over," Sakura answered. "We were wondering where you two went. Where'd you go?"_

_"We were watching the volleyball game," Rika said as she scooted between Tomoyo and Sakura. "Yamashita-kun was playing and Naoko wanted to cheer for him. Even though he's on the other team!"_

_"So!? He's cute!"_

_"Anyway, our class is in first place right now!" The four girls cheered simultaneously. Then Rika grabbed Sakura's shoulder. "Did you know the guys' final soccer game is in five minutes?"_

_Sakura gasped. "Oh yeah!" She scrambled to her feet._

_"You guys cheer for Syaoran and Hiro," Tomoyo decided. "Rika and I will stay here and cheer for Eriol and Takashi."_

_Sakura pulled Rika to her feet. "Ok. Meet you guys at the field for lunch?"_

_"Sounds good!"_

_Sakura and Naoko ran out of the basketball court without another word and headed off for the soccer field. The sidelines of the green field were occupied by students of different classes and a few teachers. Sakura and Naoko found a group of their classmates carrying a huge banner of their class._

_"Hey guys!"_

_"Hey! They're starting in a minute."_

_"Who's that guy beside Nogawa Hiro? He's kind of cute!"_

_"That's Syaoran Li, from Class 3-C."_

_"Syaoran Li looks so cool!"_

_"Yeah, he's so cute. I heard he's the best soccer player in school."_

_"Did you watch him play before? He's so good!"_

_"Does he have a girlfriend?"_

_"I don't think so. But he does spend a lot of time with those girls over there."_

_At that, Sakura and Naoko glanced behind them. The group of six girls looked away immediately and continued talking about Syaoran in quieter voices._

_Surprised, Naoko asked, "Does Syaoran have a fan club now? I didn't know anybody liked him."_

_Also stunned by the comments, Sakura said a little uncomfortably, "Yeah I didn't know that either. I understand the soccer thing, but cute? Really?"_

_Then the boys from 3-A and 3-C ran to the field. Naoko and Sakura jumped to their feet with the crowd. They and their classmates cheered from the top of their lungs, "Let's go 3-C!"_

_The game soon began and everyone settled back down. Ten minutes went by quickly, with the ball passed back and forth between the two teams. A few goals were attempted, but no success. At the end of ten minutes, neither team had scored._

_While they watched the game, Naoko left and came back several times to check on the basketball game happening inside the gym. Their class, led by Takashi's basketball skills, was apparently winning._

_And then, with one minute left in the game, Syaoran stole the ball from the other team. He ran off with it. No one seemed to catch him. Sakura stopped breathing. He reached the other team's goal area._

_"Let's go Syaoran!" The girls behind cheered._

_That woke her up. She stood up. "NOBODY'S BEHIND YOU! KICK IT SHO!"_

_And almost immediately, Syaoran stopped and kicked the ball. It curved a little to the left at first, so the goalie dove towards the left, but he couldn't jump high enough and the ball hit the net at the top of the goal._

_Sakura released a huge cheer as she jumped up, her fists waving high above her head. The rest of her classmates scrambled to their feet and jumped along with her. On the field, Syaoran and the team celebrated too, slapping him on the back and ruffling his hair._

_The game ended twenty seconds after that, with the other team unsuccessful in scoring a goal. Sakura and the rest rushed to the field. They cheered as one big group, especially when it was announced that their class was number one in total points so far._

_"Huge goal!"_

_"Syaoran that was awesome!"_

_"Play of the day!"_

_"Thanks," he laughed._

_He went to the bench quickly to grab a towel. He was a sweaty mess and his jersey was dirty with grass stains, as per usual. Throwing the towel over his head, he looked around the field until his eyes landed on the emerald-eyed girl, who was in the middle of the crowd, jumping around happily with Naoko._

_Jogging back towards the field, he called out her name. "Sakuchin."_

_She turned. Her eyes landing on Syaoran, she came running and then threw her arms around him. "SHO! You were amazing!"_

_He laughed, hugging her right back. "Thanks for the cheer!" Then he pulled away slightly. He beamed at her and said, "I needed that. Thank you!" Then he planted a noisy kiss on her cheek before running to his teammates who were still happily celebrating in the middle of the field._

_Left alone, Sakura was like a statue. That was the first time Syaoran had ever kissed her on the cheek. In the 14 years they'd known each other, not once did he ever do that. Ever._

_She stared after him. He didn't look affected by it. Because that was probably nothing more than just a brotherly act of affection spurred on by that huge win. Of course it was. Her mind knew that. But her heart was pounding so hard and she couldn't explain that._

_"You ok?"_

_Sakura turned and saw Naoko giving her a questioning look._

_"You look like you've seen a ghost!"_

_"Yeah." She blinked a few times. "Something like that."_

**::: Now :::**

With those memories fresh in her mind, Sakura released a quiet sigh. That was the moment she started to see him as more than a friend. A year later, it developed into a serious crush without her realizing it. Then a year after that, during their second year in senior high, he had officially become her first love, though it was entirely onesided.

She looked over at Syaoran now. He was taking picture of the soccer field and the newly planted cherry blossom trees lined up along the fence. She couldn't think of a memory that didn't involve him. Not during elementary, not during junior high. Every moment of her life, he was there.

But in less than two months, she was going to start a new chapter in her life; one that wouldn't include Syaoran anymore. Instead, it would be-

"Syaoran," she called out, interrupting the thoughts that were making her apprehensive. "Syaoran."

He glanced back and squinted against the sun shining behind her. "What?"

"Maybe we should go home. I don't feel so good," she began, walking to him.

"Maybe you're still hungry," he reasoned. "I mean, we did just eat lunch but-"

"No I think we should go home," she insisted, pulling on his arm. "Let's go."

"Why?"

"Because," she repeated more firmly.

"Ok, in the beginning I didn't get why you wanted to do this trip down memory lane, but I'm actually enjoying this. I want to see our old high school." When she didn't relent, he said, "You don't want to see it? We drove all this way and we're not gonna see it?"

She pursed her lips.

"You said this is the last time you and I will ever get to spend time together, just us two. You sure you want this day to end already?"

At that she was defeated. Scowling, she crossed her arms.

He grinned triumphantly. "Let's just take one more picture here then head to the high school."

"Fine. But I'm not smiling."

Getting better at taking selfie shots, Syaoran positioned the camera in front of them. He put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. Just before he pressed the button, out of nowhere, impulsively, she turned to him, tiptoed, and planted a kiss on his cheek. Luckily, the photo still caught Syaoran smiling, oblivious to the stolen kiss.

Syaoran swiveled and looked at her with a baffled expression on his face. "Wha-"

Also unable to explain her own reaction, she snapped, "That's what you get for not listening to me baka!" Then she walked away in a huff.

* * *

><p><em>AN: _Happy New Year! Sorry this story is going kind of slow... but sometimes that's the best way to appreciate a story, hehe. Praying for good things for everyone this new year!


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

* * *

><p><strong>::: 10 years ago :::<strong>

_"Morning," Eriol greeted the group a little breathlessly as he put his things down on his seat._

_Eriol's face was red and his glasses were misty. "Morning. Did you just have track practice?" Tomoyo asked._

_"Yeah." He wiped his glasses with the towel hanging over his neck. "Coach's been brutal all week. We had to run 20 laps around the field before class. I had to get up at 5am. First of many," he said, drinking from his water bottle._

_"Tell me about it. We have practice everyday for the next two weeks," Hiro complained, letting out a big yawn. "But good thing it's after school."_

_"It's summer, what do you guys expect? At least you're out there getting your exercise. Getting your tan," Naoko added with a hint of jealousy. "My club's practically nonexistent. The members are dropping out like flies." She was in the photography club._

_Rika laughed. "Only because you're the youngest and everyone else is going into their graduating year. Don't worry Nao-chan, you'll get more recruits after Clubs Day next month."_

_"Hopefully. How's English club going? Any activities coming up?"_

_"Yeah, we've got a debate to get ready for in September." Rika was the captain of the English club, which had a good fifteen people signed up._

_Syaoran and Sakura walked into the class just then. "Morning," they greeted simultaneously._

_"Sakuchin!" Tomoyo jumped up. "They changed the dates of the tryouts. It's starting today. Are we doing it or are we doing it?"_

_"What?! Yes! Of course we are!"_

_"Cheerleading team? Really?" Hiro asked doubtfully. "You're thinking of forming one?"_

_"There already is one, baka. That's why we're going to tryouts."_

_Hiro rolled his eyes then turned to Syaoran. "You brought your gear?"_

_Syaoran flashed his soccer duffel bag. "I can't wait. It's been months since we last stepped on that field."_

_"Yeah…" As much as he liked being in the same sports club as Syaoran, he wasn't practically great at soccer, and he spent his first year warming up the bench. "I seriously doubt I've improved. Coach's gonna sit me all year I know it."_

_"We'll work on it, don't worry."_

_"Thanks man."_

_"Where's Taka?" Rika asked absently._

_"Over there," Naoko pointed to the front gate out the window. Takashi stood there talking to a girl wearing a different uniform. "New girl?"_

_"Yup," the boys all said in a chorus._

_Seating beside each other, Syaoran turned to Sakura. "Tryouts start right after school, right? Where's it gonna be?"_

_"In the small gym I think. Why? Want to come and support?" She asked hopefully._

_"I was thinking about it. Soccer practice doesn't start till 5. Maybe I can watch for half an hour," he offered._

_A huge smile appeared on her face and she looped an arm over his shoulders. "Yay! Tomo, did you hear that? Sho's gonna come and watch our tryouts!"_

_Tomoyo gasped. "Really?! Syaoran, you're the best."_

_He laughed. "Want to join, Hiro? Eriol?"_

_"Sure."_

_"Yeah I'm there!"_

:::

_At the end of their routine, Sakura and Tomoyo, both still panting, looked up at the stands and saw the three boys waving and cheering. They looked at each other, laughed, and ran up the bleachers._

_"That was awesome!" Hiro exclaimed._

_"Yeah, didn't know you could do flips like that," Syaoran said with admiration. "You girls did great."_

_"Your uniform's cute," Eriol added, mainly looking at Tomoyo._

_"Oh stop! Gross." Sakura said, slapping his arm violently. They were wearing the cheerleading uniforms, which weren't so modest and still a little uncomfortable for Sakura._

_"Ow, what?" Eriol frowned back at her and moved far away from Sakura's reach. "It's not you I'm looking at," he muttered under his breath._

_Ignoring him, Syaoran asked, "So what happens now?"_

_"We find out the results tomorrow. They want to recruit five girls so hopefully we get in!" Tomoyo fisted her hands in the air. "Right, Sakuchin?"_

_"Yes! We must be positive! We'll definitely get in," she said firmly._

_"Nice. Anyway, we gotta go," Hiro said as the guys stood up. "Two hours of running and kicking drills until I can go home and do my homework. Oh high school life."_

_The girls walked with the guys as they went down the bleachers and out of the gym doors._

_"Syaoran-kun!" A chorus of girls called._

_The guys looked over their shoulders. One girl out of the group walked forward shyly, moving closer, a small white letter in her hands. Tomoyo and Sakura exchanged a look._

_"Syaoran, can I give you this?" She asked._

_Embarrassed that this was happening right now in front of his friends, Syaoran absently scratched the back of his head and walked towards her._

_"Sure," he said and took it from her. "Thanks."_

_"Thank you. Have a great practice!" She said quickly before running back to the girls, who then, all together, ran out of sight._

_"Aw man," he muttered, ignoring the teasing looks and remarks from Eriol and Hiro._

_"Geez, Syaoran. It doesn't end does it! I've never seen that girl. She's probably a first year!" Hiro remarked, shaking his head in incredulity. "Is that an everyday thing with you?"_

_"Shut up. It's not."_

_"Guys, we're going to go change," Tomoyo announced, waving to them. "See you tomorrow."_

_The boys looked up and waved back. "See ya."_

_Noticing the dejected expression on Sakura's face, Syaoran called out, "Oi, Kinomoto! It was good, don't worry," he called out._

_Sakura turned and looked at him. With a nod, she said, "Thanks!"_

_When the boys were out of sight, Sakura groaned loudly and dropped her head on Tomoyo's shoulder. "I hate this! Why did I have to like him of all people?"_

_Tomoyo wrapped an arm around her. All she could say was, "Syaoran's a good guy. I don't blame you."_

_She let out another annoyed sound as she walked into the changing room._

**::: 8 years ago :::**

_"Good morning."_

_Sakura muffled a yawn as she walked down the stairs. "Morning."_

_Nadeshiko couldn't help but smile as she watched her seventeen-year-old daughter become more and more beautiful everyday. She still kept her hair above her shoulders, but it fit the shape of her face perfectly. Her eyes still carried the same brightness and cheerfulness that was always there in kindergarten._

_"Did you sleep late last night?" She asked, putting an arm around Sakura's shoulders and kissing her forehead._

_"Mm."_

_"Let's have breakfast."_

_"K. Where's Dad?"_

_"Still sleeping. He had to work overtime last night. I didn't want to wake him up on his day off."_

_Sakura sat across from her mother at the dining table. As usual, she prepared far more than anyone could eat in one sitting. Her tummy growling, Sakura said, "Itadakimasu," quickly and dove in. Her chopsticks in hand, she took a portion out of each dish and filled her plate._

_"Slow down," Nadeshiko reminded lightly. "Tell me about school. How are preparations going?"_

_"Good. We have six more days to practice. All the costumes are done. Eriol and Tomoyo have been practicing their lines like crazy," Sakura said, then took a spoonful of food._

_"That's good to hear. They're the prince and princess, right?"_

_"Yeah. Mom, I can't even begin to describe how cute they look together. I never saw it before, but when they started acting up on that stage, it's like there's no other person out there who matches Tomoyo better. And same for Eriol."_

_Nadeshiko laughed. "Aren't you all best friends? Wouldn't that be weird?"_

_"Yeah of course. And I doubt they like each other that way. Since I met Tomoyo, she's never shown any interest in anybody. Eriol…he doesn't seem interested in her that way either. But I mean, if they were interested in each other, they'd make a good couple."_

_"Well, you never know with these things," her mom replied with words of wisdom. "When I met your father, I thought he didn't care much about me. He didn't show any signs of interest or anything. It took him years to admit how shy he was and how he'd liked me for so long."_

_"Really? Huh." Now curious to hear what her mom had to say about other issues concerning love, she asked very innocently, "So…just curious, what do you think about two people who have known each other for a long time? I mean, do you think they could ever fall in love with each other? Does that ever happen or do they always just stay friends?"_

_Nadeshiko laughed at the random way she threw the question in there. "I think in that situation, it depends on the two people involved."_

_"What do you mean?"_

_"It depends if one or both are willing to risk their friendship to confess their feelings. It's a huge risk, especially if the other doesn't feel the same way. It changes the friendship completely. Sometimes it's never the same after. But," she added when Sakura's facial expression all but crumbled. "If they feel the same way and they risk telling each other their feelings, I imagine they'll have an amazing love."_

_Sakura scooted forward in her seat. "Why?"_

_"Well, as they say, 'Happiness is being married to your best friend.'" her eyes glinted ever so slightly._

_"Hmm…"_

_"Are you thinking of marrying one of your best friends, honey?" Nadeshiko teased, unable to stop herself. Sakura was taking her words much too seriously._

_"What?!" Sakura cried. She shook her head vigorously. "No, no, of course not! I'm only seventeen! Geez Mom. Just hypothetical questions. I'm just curious. Can't a girl be curious? That's all."_

_She laughed. Her daughter was in love with one of those boys and it was written all over her red face._

::::::

_"Break!" The director of the play, the class' very own Naoko, announced. "Fifteen minutes! Then I want to practice from the top."_

_Sakura stood up and stretched her aching back. She'd been painting the set background for hours. In her group was Hiro, but he was useless. He spent most of his time fooling around and visiting other classrooms to avoid doing the work. She'd yelled at him several times already to get back to work and it worked the first few times. Then he decided to visit classes farther away so she couldn't hunt him down._

_Sakura glanced around their homeroom. The costume designers had already finished their job, so they weren't around. The ones in the play were gathered in one corner of the room, rehearsing and memorizing lines together. Among them were Syaoran, Tomoyo and Eriol. Deciding not to bother them, she left the room and went to the soccer field alone to get a breather._

_Though it wasn't much of a breather. About twenty boys were using it now, playing a soccer game during cultural festival preparations. She sat on the grass and watched them._

_Meanwhile, back in the homeroom, the three best friends were sitting by the window, resting._

_Eriol dropped his head on the desk. "My brain's fried. I can't memorize anymore."_

_"You have everything memorized," Tomoyo assured him gently. "You just have to practice on saying it with more emotion."_

_Beside him, Syaoran leaned back against his seat and glanced out the window. "I just want to play soccer," he lamented. "After the festival, there's only one more week of club activities then it's officially over for us."_

_"Yeah."_

_Tomoyo stood up from the windowsill and glanced around the room. "Where's Sakuchin?"_

_Eriol looked up, didn't spot her, and slumped back on top of the desk. "Beats me."_

_Just then, they heard someone cry out. The familiar high pitch made Syaoran jump up. He looked out the window and caught sight of Sakura covering her face. And the soccer ball was close by. Syaoran was out of the room before they could say anything._

_Tomoyo stared after him, the expression on her face saying it all._

_"He sees her like she's his little sister," Eriol spoke from behind her._

_Tomoyo turned and met Eriol's gaze. "Then why does he go after her like that? Like she's the only person in his world."_

_Eriol had no answer for her._

_Meanwhile, the boy who'd kicked the ball yelled, "Sorry!"_

_"You ok?" One who stood closer to Sakura asked._

_She felt like there was a cut under her left eye where the ball hit. Her left cheekbone felt bruised. She kept her face behind her hands, not because she wanted to cry in pain, but because she felt her temper rising._

_She had come out to relax and rest. Maybe it was her fault for sitting here, but heck, she was well beyond the sidelines. And it wasn't her fault that they sucked at soccer. They could kick, but kicking the ball at full force and hitting her? Well, if that wasn't an indication of their lack of skill, what was?_

_"Are you okay?" Someone else called out._

_"You guys made her cry!"_

_"No, man! That's not your fault! She shouldn't have been sitting there."_

_"Why were you kicking that way?! The goal's over there."_

_"You…" She slowly stood up and uncovered her face. "You IDIO-" A hand fell over her mouth just then, a strong arm wrapping around her waist. Sakura's gaze flew up to Syaoran, who was hauling her off the soccer field._

_"Let's get you to the nurse's office."_

_Sakura almost bit his hand. She pried his hand off her face. "Did you hear them!? Did they just blame me?!"_

_"I know," he began, still keeping a firm arm around her waist. "Just remember that you're a respected member of the cheerleading squad and you're a senpai…"_

_"They shouldn't even be allowed in the soccer field if they're going to play that bad! Imagine if that happened in a normal game. They'd knock out a parent or a kid watching in the sidelines!" She continued, ignoring him._

_"The guy who hit you isn't in the soccer team," Syaoran interrupted._

_"Argh! Still! Look!" She stopped walking suddenly and turned to him. "Look at my face!"_

_He stopped and faced her. When she kept moving, he grabbed her chin. "Stop." He moved closer to study the cut and the bruise._

_Though still fuming, she immediately became aware of how close his face was to hers. If they weren't best friends, people would think more of it. Nevertheless, the pulse under her chin increased. She tried not to inch back. Instead, she swallowed and pushed him back slightly._

_Not noticing anything, he said, "Doesn't look so bad, but you're bleeding. Come on." He dragged her with him towards the nurse's office._

_Ten minutes later, the nurse finished placing the bandaid on Sakura's face and passing her an ice bag. With a look, the nurse scolded them. "Why do I see you two in here at least twice a month? Can you both just learn to be careful and stay away from trouble?"_

_Sakura opened her mouth to protest when Syaoran slapped a hand over her mouth for the second time that day. "Yeah, sorry Fukushima-sensei. We'll try and do that." He grabbed Sakura's arm and dragged her out of the nurse's office. "Thank you again."_

_Sakura bit back the angry words sitting at the base of her throat._

_"You have to admit though. We do visit the nurse a lot. At least you do."_

_"Shut up, so do you," she remarked. Then her facial expression eased. She glanced over at him and said, "Thanks for coming to my rescue."_

_He showed her his lopsided smile. Since junior high, rarely did he smile like that, but only because girls tended to go crazy every time he did it. But it was one smile he also tended to reserve just for her, though he didn't realize it. "Anytime."_

_Sakura felt her heart skip a beat. She looked away from him. Then he ruffled the top of her head playfully._

* * *

><p><em>AN_: Another glimpse into their past. The next chapter will go back to present time.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

* * *

><p>On their drive home, Sakura was unusually quiet. As he drove down the highway, Syaoran tried to figure out what was going through that brain of hers. When they'd gone to visit the high school, she wasn't in the mood and half the time she was walking off on her own. At some point, he stopped bothering with her and toured around the school on his own. Good thing he had the camera.<p>

He managed to take a shot of her by the open field where the cheerleading team often practiced their routines. When she saw him with the camera focused on her, she threw him a very angry stare. He zoomed in and took that photo shamelessly as well.

Now here they were, about an hour away from home.

After a while, he finally said, "Okay…time to tell me why you're mad. I've been thinking about it for hours and I still can't figure out why you're upset, so..."

"I'm fine."

"Why do women always say that when they're angry with the world? You're definitely not okay. You kissed me."

Sakura gasped. "You did not just say that!"

"But you did!"

"On the _cheek_. There's a _huge_ difference, Syaoran."

"Wha-" He laughed then. This was ridiculous. "Ok fine. If you say you're fine and I don't contest you on it, can you lighten up then? This is our last time to hang out together with just the two of us. Can we end the night on good terms at least?"

"Stop saying that."

"What?" He glanced at her. "Wait, you said that first," he accused.

She blinked a few times, disconcerted. She opened her mouth slightly, about to say something, then closed it again. Then she shook her head several times. "Exactly, so I don't need you repeating everything I say!"

"I'm only saying it again because you made a good point."

"I know I did," she snapped.

He drove the car to the side of the road and parked it.

"What are you doing?" Sakura demanded.

He threw her a look. "We're not going anywhere until you tell me what's going on with you. I can't have you throwing a temper tantrum while I'm driving, so spill it."

Sakura stared back at him blankly.

"Sakura."

"I'm not angry," she muttered, crossing her arms. "I'm just…"

"Just what?" He asked patiently, as though talking to a little kid.

"Don't be condescending."

He put his hands up in surrender.

"I'm just…" She began, but drifted off again.

He continued to wait.

Then, unable to stand the silence, she burst out, "I don't know, okay? I don't know why I'm upset. All I know is I've practically spent my whole life with you and I don't have one single memory that doesn't include you in it. And today, when we were at all the schools, all I kept remembering were memories with _you_. And I thought about how in six weeks, that'll all change and-"

Then Syaoran wiped a tear from her cheek. She slightly gasped, realizing she was already crying. She grabbed tissue from his tissue box and wiped her cheek.

"This is embarrassing. You don't understand."

"No, I do," he argued calmly, sitting back against his seat and looking up at the car ceiling. "When you said this morning that this is our last time to hang out like this, I felt like someone punched me in the gut."

Sakura sniffled. "Really?"

"Yeah but…" Even now, he couldn't understand the growing ache in his heart. "That's life, you know? What do you expect? You want to marry Kohei. You said yes to him."

Sakura could merely nod her head in reply.

"You can't have us both, Kinomoto," he joked, earning an elbow hit on the rib from her.

"I just don't want to lose you, Sho."

At that, Syaoran chuckled. "Aww." He pulled her for a hug, rubbing her back. "You're not gonna lose me, Sakuchin. I told you when we were five that I'd always be here for you. And for the record, _I _never went away."

When they pulled away, she kept her gaze on the wet tissue in her hands. "Things will change though."

"I know."

"When I get hurt…"

Syaoran looked back at her.

"You won't be the one saving me anymore."

"Ah…" He exhaled a breath, then cleared his throat. "Don't think I was ready to hear that. Let's head home," he leaned forward and started up the car. "You mind if we just listen to music for the rest of the ride?"

Realizing she'd hurt him, Sakura kept her gaze down. She didn't reply; she merely turned on the radio and rested back against her seat.

::::::

Tomoyo crossed her arms in front of her chest as she sat by the end of the pier, staring out at the dark blue ocean in front of her. Though the stars were out, she couldn't see them well. The city lights were much brighter.

She sat waiting for Eriol to finish his jog. And while she waited, she thought of the night she and Sakura reconciled. It still warmed her heart now to think of it. She was still the same feisty Sakura that she'd met at the young age of twelve. But it made her so happy that Sakura had forgiven her.

Tomoyo stood up and turned around when she heard the sound of running footsteps. Drenched in sweat, Eriol came running towards her.

"Hey," he stopped in front and caught his breath.

Tomoyo took out a towel from the bag hanging over her shoulder and passed it to him. "Here."

"Thanks."

"You're still so fit, Eriol. It's incredible that you still train after all these years."

"I don't feel like it's a choice though. If I don't go for a run, even 1k, my body feels off."

They walked down the seaside. Tomoyo passed him his vitamin water when he reached for it.

She glanced inside the bag to see what else was in there. Glad that he also packed a change of clothes, she said, "You'll get sick if you don't change. Should we go to the bathroom?"

"No, I'll change here." He took off his drenched shirt.

Startled, Tomoyo stared. It wasn't freezing, but it was still technically winter. And her gaze automatically falling to his bare chest, she recognized that he definitely wasn't seventeen anymore.

Eriol pulled the shirt and sweatshirt over his head. "Thanks for carrying it," he said, now taking the bag from her.

Blushing, she pressed her cold fingers against her cheeks before he could notice. "No problem."

They kept going along the pavement that went around the edges of the park. Conversation went from exercise to London to high school memories and eventually to a topic that both were curious to ask each other.

"Why are you still single?" Eriol asked first.

She laughed. "I wanted to ask you the same question. Why _are_ you still single, Hiiragizawa? It boggles my mind."

"Really?"

She shrugged. "You're attractive, you're sweet, you're a gentleman."

"I could say the same about you. Except you're not a gentleman. But you're definitely worth the effort," he corrected, getting a wide smile out of her. "Hey, you haven't answered my question either," he reminded teasingly.

"Oh." At the way he was looking at her, Tomoyo's cheeks turned pink again. "Um, the right guy hasn't come along yet, that's all. I dated a few guys when I was in London, but that never lasted. I used to think that being attracted to someone physically was enough. It's just…not. I'd rather be with someone who I can talk to for hours and not realize how much time is passing than be with someone gorgeous and yet talk about nothing."

Eriol laughed.

"It's true," she insisted, laughing too. "I mean, I know physical attraction is important. But I can't date someone based on that alone anymore."

"Yeah I understand."

"Do you? Then what about you? I distinctly remember you crying out, 'Why is it so hard to find somebody?!'" She imitated him with exaggerated gestures.

"Oh man, did I really look like that?"

She laughed again. "More or less."

A little embarrassed, he scratched the back of his head. "Ah I don't know. I've gone to one or two goukons with Hiro and Taka, but they never work out. I haven't been in a serious relationship in five years. It's the same problem for me. There are a lot of pretty women out there, but no one as easy or fun to talk to as…"

"As?"

He just smiled and shook his head. "Nobody." Changing the topic, he said, "Can I ask you a serious question now?"

"Hm." Her eyes narrowed. "You're not getting away with that, but I'll let you change the subject for now. Only because what you just said slightly makes me nervous. Go ahead."

"About Syaoran…" He started. "I sort of heard what you said to Sakura that night of our reunion."

Recalling it clearly, Tomoyo slowly nodded. Then she grabbed his arm. "Wait, do you think Syaoran heard too?"

"No, he was at the other end of the parking lot."

"Oh ok," she said with a sigh of relief.

Catching that, he asked, "Is it true?"

"Why? Do you think it isn't?"

"I don't know. Maybe I just want to hear you say it again."

"I'm guessing you didn't hear what I told Sakura at the bar?"

"No."

Tomoyo stopped and turned towards the sea. She hugged herself against the chilly wind. "I only said that to get her attention. She wouldn't have listened to me otherwise."

Eriol turned her around to face him. "So it's not true?"

"Mm…" She tucked the strands flying with the wind behind her ear, then looked up at Eriol, her eyes clear and unwavering. "What do you think?" He stared back into them, searching for the answer.

After a long moment, her gaze fell and she let out a rueful smile. "Honestly…I don't know."

:::

After they ate dinner, which she prepared and cooked as promised, Syaoran walked Sakura home. Conveniently, they only lived about ten minutes away from each other. It was a quiet walk. Neither talked much since the car ride.

When they arrived at the entrance of her apartment building, Syaoran said, "Night, Sakuchin," then began to walk home.

"Syaoran."

He glanced back over his shoulder. "Hm?"

She came to him then and wrapped her arms around his back. "Thanks for everything today."

Not many knew how cute she could be. She was like a little kid right now, as if clutching onto her teddy bear. His heart warmed by it, he could only chuckle as he put his arms around her and rested his chin on the top of her head. "Right back at you."

They stayed in the same position for a while and then, in time, they both pulled away.

"Night."

He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. Then he patted the back of her head lovingly. "I'll leave when you go in."

She nodded, then walked away. By the door, she turned around. He was still there, standing. It seemed like they both realized how different things were going to be from that day forward. When she waved, he lifted his hand briefly, then walked on home.

With tears in her eyes for the second time that day, Sakura walked to her apartment suite. Before she even opened the door, they spilled over her cheeks. Why did it feel like her heart was breaking into pieces? Her gaze landed on the engagement ring on her finger and she fisted her hand and pushed her door open.

:::

As Syaoran walked home, he thought of how good it had been to go back to their old schools. But what she'd said during their car ride really did something awful to him. He didn't want to think about that again. He looked up at the dark sky, released a breath.

When his cellphone rang, he almost jumped. Not bothering to check who it was, he picked it up. "Hello?"

"Hi baby brother!"

Syaoran looked at his watch. "Why are you calling me right now?" He complained. "It's past midnight."

"I did call you earlier. Like ten times. But you wouldn't pick up your phone."

He pulled the phone from his ear and scrolled through all the missed calls. Fanren wasn't lying. She and Eriol and Kohei had called. But especially her.

"Sorry I must've had it on silent all day. What's up?"

"That's fine. You have to- Why? What were you doing all day?"

"I was with Sakura."

"Doing…?"

"Just hanging out," he answered impatiently. "You were saying I have to do something?"

"Oh yeah. You have to pick up dear cuz at the airport in 5 hours."

"What?!"

"Apparently it was a sudden decision." At the silent response, she added, "I don't know why she picked a really early flight either."

"Why don't _you_ pick her up?"

"I have 3 kids."

"So?! You have a husband. What's he there for if not for situations like this?" He muttered.

"Well, you're single and alone and you have nothing better to do." And their 3 other sisters were back in Hong Kong with their parents.

He groaned. "You've got to be kidding me. It's quarter past 12 right now."

"Hey it's not my fault you had your phone on silent all day! Have fun!" She hung up before he could say any more.

By the time he arrived at his apartment, he took off his shoes and jacket and dove in bed. No time to change. No time to think about anything. With less than 4 hours of sleep available, Syaoran buried his head under the pillow.

One hour in, he groaned. He was tired and grumpy. He still couldn't fall asleep.

* * *

><p><em>AN: Oh boy oh boy, everyone's feeling something stirring in the air, I must say. That, and a new character's coming in to join for a few chapters. =) To those reading the story and reviewing, thanks so much. I really do appreciate hearing your opinion! _


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

* * *

><p>At the airport, Syaoran sat at the arrival area with one big cup of black coffee in one hand and his cellphone in the other. His hair was a disheveled mess, there were bags under his eyes, and his clothes were a little creased. He'd probably gotten 2 hours of sleep max.<p>

The sun wasn't even out yet, he thought darkly.

When people started pouring out of the doors, he looked up uninterestedly, then closed his stinging eyes again. When the the tall, slender, black-haired, brown-eyed beauty walked out, he missed her grand entrance altogether.

When she stepped right in front of him, he opened one eye and saw the red pair of stilettos on her feet. His gaze ran up from her feet to her face. Then she grabbed his collar. "Get up here and kiss me."

"No." He pushed her hand off, then stood up. In her heels, he had only a few inches on her and they were almost eye to eye. "Long time no see cuz."

"Syaoran. At least give me a hug."

"So you still order people around." He commented dryly, then conceded a little. He put an arm around her and she hugged him tightly. He patted her shoulder twice, then pushed her off him. "All right let's go."

"Did you miss me?"

"No."

She sent him an annoyed look. "You could pretend to care a little bit, you know. I _am_ family."

"Wow, I'm surprised you knew that with the way you normally throw yourself on me."

As they walked through the airport, eyes shifted to them, and eventually everyone's attention was captivated by the seemingly tall and handsome couple.

Meilin had grown up in Hong Kong all her life, but spoke Japanese fluently because of her Japanese mother. She was found by a model scout at a young age of sixteen, and since then she steadily grew to national fame. At 20, she caught the attention of renowned high fashion designers and quickly became a supermodel.

"Isn't that..?"

"They look like a celebrity couple. Though he looks kinda drunk."

"She's so pretty!"

"Hey I think she was in _Vogue! _I've totally seen her before!"

"What a gorgeous couple."

Though she'd been to Japan several times, they were mostly for work and rarely for pleasure. She and Syaoran had spent a few summers together in Hong Kong. Twice she had come to Japan to visit him and Fanren, but that was only for a weekend.

"This is weird. Do you get this reaction wherever you go?" Syaoran asked, sipping his coffee.

"Obviously."

Oh she wasn't full of herself at all. "So how long are you here for?"

"Six weeks."

At that he coughed a few times. "Say that again?"

"I have two months off and I haven't really seen much of Japan except your apartment, Fanren's house, and the fashion show venues. I haven't even met these childhood friends of yours for goodness' sake. I think now's the perfect time to meet them, don't you?"

"Uh…"

"And of course I want to tour around the country and see all those places that ordinary people go to see."

"You're not seriously expecting me to show you around, are you? I didn't even know you were coming!"

"You can certainly show me around Tokyo. It's only half an hour away," she argued back. "And I want to meet your friends."

Passing a garbage can, he threw out his empty coffee cup. "Yeah why is that?"

"All I've seen are pictures. I'm curious."

"Why _is_ that?" He repeated.

She stopped and threw him an impatient look. "Can we just get to your car already? I'm so tired."

"Really? You are?" He asked, pretending to care. "Cos I'm pretty sure you got more sleep in first class than I did this morning."

"Is that why you look so awful?"

Ignoring her, he fished for his car keys. "What hotel am I dropping you off at?"

"No hotel. I'm staying with you."

Syaoran almost lost it. "Your next words better be 'I'm joking' or I'm buying you a return ticket home right now."

A smirk appeared on her porcelain features. "Fanren said I could stay at their guest room. Calm down cuz."

He stared at her blankly then walked off to the direction of the car.

::::::

"Hey," Eriol called as he hurried to the entrance door of the restaurant.

Hiro, who was standing right in front of it, turned. "Hey buddy. I thought you were coming with Tomoyo."

"She said she was going to be late." The two men in their business suits walked in. "Who else is here?"

"I don't know, I just got here."

"We have a reservation under Syaoran Li," Eriol said to the hostess who welcomed them in.

"Please follow me sir."

She led them down an aisle, turned to the left, and walked to the very end. It was a private room for groups bigger than six. Eriol took off his shoes and slid the door open.

Green eyes looked up. "Hey!"

"Hey. Just you so far?"

"Yup."

He bent down and went inside, crawling to Sakura's side.

Hiro looked in. "Aw, there's our bride!"

She smiled. "Hey, Hiro."

He quickly removed his shoes and came crawling in, settling on the cushion on the other side of Sakura. "Why'd he choose a fancy restaurant like this? Syaoran hates these kinds of places."

"I know!"

"He didn't," Eriol answered for Syaoran, taking off his blazer. "You guys know his supermodel cousin?"

"Why? Is she here?" Sakura asked in surprise. "Why didn't he tell me?!"

"Whaaat, Syaoran has a supermodel cousin?! He has _never_ mentioned her to me. I'm a little offended that you both know. Is that what we're doing in the group now, some kind of hierarchy or something? I already know Syaoran loves Sakura the most, but I mean, Eriol over me? Really?" He paused. "Is she hot?"

"Baka."

"What, is she?"

"Anyway…she picked the restaurant. You were gone on your vacation when she arrived," he told Sakura. "Syaoran says she wants to meet us."

"Interesting. I wonder why."

"Huh. Well, you and Tomoyo _are_ in the fashion industry," Hiro gathered. "That could be it. Cos if she's a supermodel, she's probably not single…"

"Where is Tomoyo by the way?" Sakura interrupted. "I thought you were coming with her."

"She said she'd be late so she told me to go ahead. How long have you been here?"

She glanced at her watch. "Maybe ten minutes."

"Oh ok. Is Kohei coming?"

"Oh! Yes, which reminds me," she grabbed her bag and looked for her phone. "He said he was going to drive from work. He said he'd call once he's close." She looked at her phone for a minute, then said, "He's probably still looking."

The waitress came with two more cups of hot tea. "Thanks," Eriol said as he grabbed it from her. After a drink, he turned back to Sakura. "How was your weekend off by the way?"

"It was good. I ended up spending the whole Saturday with Syaoran, but Sunday and Monday I drove up to Chiba and went to an onsen and spa. It was very relaxing and much needed." She took a small sip from the cup of tea in her hands.

"That's good to hear."

Hungry, Hiro grabbed the menu from Eriol's side of the table and flipped through it rapidly.

"As long as you got to relax. It must have sucked coming back," Eriol continued with a small laugh. "Except the seeing-Kohei part."

"Yeah. But ugh, Saturday was more stressful than I-"

"Hey can we order some appetizers? I'm so hungry," Hiro interrupted. "Who's down for some prawn tempura? Or spring rolls? Let's start with bread. Actually scratch that. Let's get all three. Excuse me!" He flagged a waitress down before Eriol and Sakura could say anything.

Used to it, Eriol and Sakura let him do his thing. After he listed off what he wanted, Eriol was about to ask Sakura to continue, but the hostess returned to their table with two people in tow.

"Hey!" Naoko cried. She crawled in and hugged Eriol and Sakura. "You're too far," she said to Hiro who had opened his arms for a hug. "I'm sitting here. Taka you sit over there."

"Hey guys," Takashi greeted, piling in too. At the narrowed stare Hiro was sending Naoko, Takashi bumped his head and said, "I'll hug you Hiro." Then he gave him a bear hug.

"Aw, that's why you're my buddy!" Hiro said appreciatively.

"Sorry we're late! The traffic's crazy out there."

"You're not late. Syaoran's late," Sakura pointed out. "And his supermodel cousin."

That brought on another series of mild protests about how some of them never knew of this famous cousin for fourteen years. It was like they were back in high school, talking over each other, unknowingly speaking louder and louder.

"Hello," greeted Kohei.

No one noticed for a good thirty seconds until Tomoyo came running from behind Kohei and joined in on the party. "Hey guys!"

Five pairs of eyes looked over.

"Kohei! Tomo!"

"Oh my gosh, Kohei!" Sakura scrambled to her feet. "Hi Tomo," she added quickly.

"Hey Mr. Kinomoto!"

"Tomoyo!"

Sakura quickly crawled behind Eriol and Naoko to get to them. She hugged Tomoyo briefly then grabbed Kohei's hand. "Sorry Hiro can you move over one? You said you'd call me," she said to Kohei.

"I did, twice. But you didn't pick up your phone. Sorry, excuse me, Naoko, Eriol, hello," he said as he crawled behind them.

"Hey Kohei."

Meanwhile, Tomoyo repeatedly glanced back and forth from the seat beside Takashi and the one beside Naoko. "Where should I sit?" She murmured under her breath.

Her nervousness starting to kick in, she began to move towards Takashi when a hand shot up and grabbed hers. When she looked up and met Eriol's gaze, her heart jumped.

"Sit here."

"Yeah, come sit over here," Naoko said, moving one seat over.

Blushing, she squeezed through and sat beside Eriol. "Hey," she said to him, unable to hide her smile.

Since that night they spent walking and talking after his run, she had come to wait for him at the same spot in the park every night and they would walk for an hour or so around the park.

Smiling back, he touched her back in greeting. "How's it going?"

On the opposite side of the large table, Hiro complained, "Where's my food? I ordered like ten minutes ago."

As though the waitress heard, she arrived with a silver tray of the three dishes Hiro ordered. Another was behind her with a tray of cups of tea. As they all scooted around the table so that the entrance would be accessible to the waitresses, the seating arrangement resulted as follows: from the curtains to the left, Naoko, Tomoyo, Eriol, Sakura, Kohei, Hiro, and Takashi.

"Where are they anyway?" Sakura asked now, looking at the time. "I've been here for half an hour."

"You guys can have some by the way," Hiro offered, already filling his plate with bread, rolls, and tempura.

"Don't mind if I do. I could eat a cow," Takashi said, reaching in.

"Yeah I wonder what happened. Should I call him?"

"Yeah you should."

Eriol disappeared for a few minutes then came back. "They're just parking the car now."

"Did he say what happened?" Naoko asked.

He shook his head.

Five minutes later, Syaoran, with Meilin behind him, came into the restaurant. In an annoyed and exhausted mood, he pulled at the lapels of his suit. The hostess walked them through the restaurant and to the corner private area, which was currently very noisy.

Syaoran turned to Meilin and said, "The first thing you're gonna do is apologize."

"Why?!"

"Oh I don't know, for not being dressed on time, for making me wait for almost an hour, for making me stop at a drug store so you could buy pantyho-"

"Ok fine, fine. Just shut up and go inside," she said dismissively.

His hand turning into a fist, he held back the really strong urge to do something regretful. Forcing himself to remember that she was a woman, and a woman many people around the world knew, he turned around and decided to ignore her for the rest of the night. He took off his shoes and slid the door open.

"Syaoran!" came the chorus from the table.

His head dropped and he let out a huge sigh. "Hi," was all he said. Then he pulled her in forcibly.

All eyes shifted to Meilin, then widened. Jaws slightly fell.

Syaoran didn't bother with the niceties and squeezed in between Eriol and Sakura. Not caring that the entire table had gone dead silent and were still staring at Meilin, Syaoran grabbed the menu and flipped through it.

"Did you guys order yet?"

"Uh…"

Then the clamor of loud hellos and questions and all sorts of comments came at once. Already nursing a headache, Syaoran put up both hands.

"Hold on a second. Meilin has something she wants to say."

Meilin, who hardly flinched at the attention, merely smiled, and said, "Hi everyone. It's nice to finally meet you all. I'm sorry that Syaoran and I were late today. It was my fault. There. Was that good? Can I sit down now?"

"Yeah sit over here with me!" Hiro said quickly, pushing Takashi over one seat. "Right here," he patted the cushion beside him.

Meilin ignored him. "Hm. I'd like to sit here. You don't mind do you?" She sent a very brief smile to Tomoyo and sat between her and Eriol. Then she looked up again and met everyone's expectant stares. "Yes?"

"You're so beautiful," Naoko blurted. She exuded a "Hollywood celebrity" vibe and it was definitely blinding.

"Thank you."

"Syaoran never told us about you," Takashi said.

"That doesn't surprise me. Could you all introduce yourselves? I don't know your names. I've only seen pictures."

"I'm Eriol," he shook her hand. "It's nice to finally meet you, Meilin."

She studied Eriol's face and finally found a reason to genuinely smile. He was a very attractive man. "Hi Eriol."

"I'm-"

"Sakura," she guessed. She'd seen her face in almost every picture Syaoran brought home to them. "You grew up with Syaoran, right?"

"Yes, well, we all did. But this is my fiancé, Kohei."

Kohei was still trying to recover at the sight of Meilin, so he fumbled a little when he reached forward to shake her hand. "Hi. You're…you're…a supermodel. I've seen you on TV and on magazines."

Slightly amused by his reaction, she shook his hand in return. "Yes I'm sure you have."

Because of her rudeness, Hiro felt put off by her. Uninterested in meeting her gaze, he merely said, "I'm Hiro. Next."

"Takashi. Nice to meet you Meilin."

"And I'm Naoko. Hi," she said again when they shook hands.

"Great. When are you two getting married? Syaoran failed to tell me that you were getting married, Sakura. I thought you were my biggest rival," she said with an almost wicked smile. "Looks like I don't have to worry about you at all."

"What?"

"Nothing, just ignore her," Syaoran replied.

"We're getting married in just under five weeks, right honey?" Kohei answered when Sakura didn't say a thing.

"Yeah." She briefly showed Meilin her engagement ring. "There it is."

"Oh wow." It was a half-hearted compliment.

"Uh why don't we order. Sorry for the long wait guys. I know everybody's hungry." He squeezed Sakura's thigh under the table.

Sympathetically, she rubbed his back.

Half an hour later, the food finally arrived, and everyone had a better idea of Meilin's personality. She was snobbish, curt with her answers, and easily got bored of a conversation topic. Everyone understood exactly why Syaoran looked half-irritated, half-wearied upon arrival.

"Do you enjoy your work?" Takashi asked.

"Only if I'm wearing clothes that makes me look good."

"…Right."

"You didn't tell me she was coming," Sakura whispered to Syaoran.

"I found out five hours before she was landing," he muttered back, loosening his tie.

"Eriol are you dating anyone?" Meilin asked suddenly and loud enough for everyone to hear.

Eriol blinked. "Why?"

She shrugged casually. "It's a simple question. Yes or no?"

"Uh…" Eriol's gaze dropped a few notches to catch sight of Tomoyo from the corner of his eye. She was looking down at her food without much of a reaction. "No I'm not."

Tomoyo's grip on her fork unconsciously tightened.

"Good. Let's have dinner tomorrow night, just you and I."

Tomoyo dropped the fork she was holding. Sakura's eyes narrowed. Kohei froze with his hand holding his fork just in front of his mouth. Naoko and Takashi openly stared at Meilin. Hiro's mouth dropped open. Syaoran kept eating his food.

Did she just ask a man out on a date? In front of everyone? In public?

"Sorry?"

"Let's go on a date," she repeated. "You're free tomorrow night, aren't you?"

"N-no!" Tomoyo interrupted.

Eriol and Sakura's gaze shot to Tomoyo. Everyone else's gaze followed half a second later. The only person who wasn't looking her way was Syaoran, who drank a sip to hide his smile.

Meilin threw her a slightly irked look. "No?"

"I mean, Eriol said he was going to watch a movie with me tomorrow night," Tomoyo said quickly, talking a bit faster than normal. "Right?"

Eriol was still too surprised to respond.

"Yeah I was there when Eriol asked Tomoyo," Syaoran answered instead. "Looks like you're out of luck, cuz."

"Are you covering for her because you're jealous?" Meilin directed at him.

"Uh…No."

Halfway through dinner, Sakura met Tomoyo in the bathroom. She locked the door and crossed her arms. Stuck, Tomoyo looked back into Sakura's narrowed gaze and held her hands together in uncertainty.

"What was that?" Sakura demanded.

"Hmm? I…"

Sakura continued to scrutinize her. "You said you're in love with Syaoran."

"I…I…am…?"

"So why would you have a problem with Meilin going on a date with _Eriol_?"

Tomoyo shrugged helplessly. "I don't know. When she said that, it just came out. I don't know."

"Are you in love with both of them?"

Tomoyo bit her lip. "I don't know." Then she grabbed Sakura's arms and gripped them. "But I think I like Eriol a little bit."

Sakura squeezed the bridge of her nose. "If you have a problem with the man going on a date with someone else, I'm pretty sure you like him more than a little bit."

"I know. I know. It's so bad. It's awful." Tomoyo dropped her arms to her side. "I just…the more time I spend with Eriol, the more I see how much he's changed. I see him in a very different way and…"

"What about Syaoran?" Sakura interrupted.

"I've spent time with Syaoran too, but it's not the same. With Eriol, I feel like he just sees _me_. He asks me so many questions and wants to know who I am, who I've become. Syaoran…"

"Syaoran?" she prodded.

Just then, Tomoyo smiled almost a little sadly. "Syaoran hasn't changed. Just like in high school."

"Neither has Eriol," she argued back.

"Yeah but Syaoran… he just sees you, Sakuchin."

Sakura felt something inside her tighten. "No."

"I know you guys are best friends and I know you're like brother and sister. And I've seen you two grow up together. But…you should stop and look at him when he looks at you. He doesn't look at you like a brother would. There's more-"

"Tomoyo, stop," Sakura interrupted. "This conversation is _so_ not happening. I'm getting married in five weeks! And why are you pushing Syaoran at me? You said you're still in love with him!"

"I don't know!" She repeated in as loud a voice as Sakura. Then her head dropped in a sign of weariness and she walked away from Sakura. "Before I came back, I was. At least I thought I was."

"What happened? You've only been here less than a month."

"Like you said, Sakuchin, eight years is a long time." For a moment, she was quiet, then she said, "I don't expect you to understand. I can't understand myself either."

Sakura kept studying her until someone knocked on the door. Without a choice, she said before unlocking it, "Ok fine, but this conversation isn't over."

* * *

><p><em>AN: Sorry for the late chapter! I caught the flu and it's like an epidemic here in Japan, so it was inevitable. But I'm getting better now. Take care of your health, everyone! I will update again soon!_


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

* * *

><p>Syaoran stood in one fitting room and Eriol in the other. Partially because Sakura was unwilling to pick one of them to be her maid-of-honor and partially because her closest friend out of them was a man, she asked the four of them to be her "bridesmen" and Naoko her bridesmaid. Of course, with Tomoyo's arrival, and after their reconciliation, Sakura made the emergency call to get one more bridesmaid dress made.<p>

"This is weird," Syaoran said as the tailor readjusted his lapels. After another moment he added, "I can't believe she's getting married. Two weeks from now."

Eriol glanced up. They were wearing the same black tuxedo and light pink vest and tie, as decided by Sakura. But for some reason, Syaoran looked a lot better in it than he did. Maybe if he took off his glasses, he'd look as good, he wondered vaguely.

"I feel weird about this," Syaoran said again.

Eriol's tailor stepped out so Eriol could look at the mirror in different angles.

"Are you listening to me?"

Eriol turned around and looked over his back. "Uh…if it's about how weird this feels, I tuned you out like half an hour ago."

"Don't you think it's weird?"

"No."

"Really?"

"What's so weird about it? People get married all the time. Rika's married."

Eriol was fairly sure he knew why Syaoran was feeling that way, but he knew Syaoran didn't. And that was amusing.

"Because. It's _Sakura_."

"Mm, that explains a lot."

After they both inspected their suits and walked around a few times to feel the comfort, Syaoran decided everything was good. The tailor began to help him out of it, when out of nowhere, Syaoran asked Eriol a question he'd never before asked.

"Do you think Kohei's the right guy for her?"

Eriol looked up at that.

Syaoran met his gaze. "What?"

"You're really gonna ask that question right now?"

"What?"

"Their wedding is two weeks away."

"…So that's a yes?"

"Why are you asking right now?"

"What? It's an innocent question."

"No it's not," Eriol said with an amused chuckle. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were jealous, buddy."

Finding it a ridiculous and confusing assumption, Syaoran remarked, "Of Sakura?"

"Of Kohei. Because he's the one who gets to marrySakura." _Not you_.

"That doesn't make any sense."

"You don't make any sense."

Syaoran threw him an exasperated look.

"Ok fine, I'll ask you the same question. Do _you_ think Kohei's the right guy for her?"

He judged it for a moment and was about to open his mouth when the door of the wedding shop opened.

"Hey guys," Sakura greeted first.

Eriol and Syaoran exchanged a look.

"Hi boys," Tomoyo said as she followed Sakura in.

"Wha- why aren't you wearing your suit?!" Sakura demanded.

Syaoran stopped midway of putting his sweater on. "I'm done."

"But I want to see it on you!"

His mouth opened in disbelief. "But I just took it off! I look exactly the same as Eriol so just check his out."

"Ah, he looks better in it than I do," Eriol immediately said. "But what do you think?"

"You look amazing!" Tomoyo praised. "Doesn't he?"

"Yes you do! Wow, that light pink really does look wonderful."

Momentarily distracted, Sakura shoved Syaoran aside and made Eriol turn around and around as she inspected the sleeves, the back, the front, the length of the pants, and whatever else there was to inspect.

"It looks good," she began tentatively. "What do you think? Is it comfortable? The length is good?"

Eriol shrugged. "Yeah."

"All right well I'm heading out," Syaoran announced, grabbing his things from the bench. "Thanks Mr. Tailorman," he said kindly to the gentleman who attended to him.

Sakura turned around. "Where are you going?"

"I gotta go pick up Meilin."

"Uh no, you're going back in there and putting that suit on again, Li," she ordered.

"What? No way."

"Yes way! I need to see how it looks on you. Go back in, Sho. You're not getting out of this store until you put it on and show me." She moved to the entrance door with her hands on her hips, a firm frown on her face.

As the bickering began, Tomoyo went to Eriol.

"Are you here for a fitting too?" He asked.

"Mm. It's a good thing Naoko and I are the same size," she answered, touching his tuxedo. "You look really nice, Hiira."

Her compliment made him slightly go red. "Do I? I felt like a dork standing beside Syaoran earlier. I should wear contacts for the wedding, right?"

She laughed. "I think you'd look great with or without those glasses."

"Take your shirt off!" Sakura cried, pulling on Syaoran's shirt under his sweater.

"I'm not taking my clothes off for you."

"Take them off now or I'm going to rip them off you with my bare teeth!"

"All right kids, this is starting to sound inappropriate," Eriol interjected calmly.

Tomoyo quickly went to Sakura and pulled her off Syaoran. Like a perfect maid-of-honor would say, she said, "Can't you just put it back on quickly so the bride can see? She just wants to be sure everything's perfect."

Syaoran stared at her. "You're gonna take her side?"

Eriol patted Syaoran's shoulder from behind. "Just do it, Li. She's the bride after all."

"You've gotta be kidding me." Walking to the fitting room, he muttered to himself, "If it's not one woman, it's the other."

When he disappeared, Sakura huffed out a breath. It tired her out to argue with him. But he was being so stubborn. Which was a very rare occurrence. Frowning, she waited impatiently for him to come out.

"You okay?" Tomoyo asked.

"Hm." Sakura pursed her lips. "Syaoran's acting strange. He's not usually this difficult to convince. Do you know why?" She demanded, turning to Eriol.

Feigning ignorance, Eriol shrugged. "Maybe he hates tuxedos."

Moments later, Syaoran came out wearing the black tuxedo, pink vest, and pink tie. One of the collars was folded backward and his hair was a bit more disheveled than before. The tie was off-kilter. Signs that he'd thrown on the outfit haphazardly.

"Satisfied?" He asked Sakura as he half-heartedly fixed the wrist collars.

Narrow-eyed, she stepped forward and fixed his collar. Tying the tie properly, she almost choked him in the process. Despite the discomfort, he showed no reaction. She turned him around, inspecting the same things she had inspected on Eriol's tuxedo. When she was satisfied, she stood back in front of him with hands on her hips.

"That wasn't so hard was it?" She replied mildly. "Everything looks good."

"Great. Can I go change?"

"Wait." With a small sigh, she looked him over again, then reached up and fixed his hair.

Having stepped closer to him, Sakura was only inches away. Syaoran began to soften up the moment her hand touched his forehead. She always had this effect on him. He could never be angry with her for too long.

He looked down at her. From this close, her eyes were even more green than he thought. Why did his chest feel like someone was pressing down against it? Then a moment came that neither had expected. She looked up and met his gaze.

Amber met emerald. For that one moment, they weren't childhood best friends. They were two people, man and woman, as though seeing each other for the first time. When his gaze flickered to her lips, her heart pounded in response.

Actually, it was reacting violently inside her chest. He had never looked at her that way before.

Then the moment ended when the door of the shop opened again. "Hey guys," Kohei said as he came through.

What just happened?

Syaoran somehow recovered first and stepped backwards. Without a greeting to Kohei, he quickly went back into the fitting room.

Sakura couldn't quite recover as fast as Syaoran. She remained frozen, her hand clutched to her chest, her pulse still slightly erratic.

"Kohei," Eriol greeted with a nod. "How's it going?"

"Good! I'm ready to try on my tuxedo! Hi, my bride-to-be," he said, walking towards Sakura, who still had her back to him.

When she felt his hand on the small of her back, she snapped out of it.

"Hi honey," he said as he bent down to kiss her cheek. She managed to smile. Noticing she wasn't her usual bright self, he asked, "You ok?"

"She's fine, just getting emotional!" Tomoyo replied quickly, stepping in. "You know, the wedding is coming up so fast." She put her arm around Sakura's shoulders and pulled her out of Kohei's grasp. "You understand how brides are."

"Hamasaki-san, your suit is right over here," the tailor interrupted, directing him towards another room in the shop.

"Yes, thank you." With another worried glance at Sakura, he said, "I'll be right back. Excuse me."

When he disappeared, Syaoran came out of the fitting room in his regular clothes. Sakura looked up again.

As though the moment had never happened, he patted her head and said, "All right, I did what you said. I'm off, Sakuchin."

She didn't know what to say or what to do. She couldn't even muster up a nod.

Trying to settle his own confusion at what had happened, he quickly said, "See you guys later," and then exited the store without looking back.

Eriol and Tomoyo turned back to Sakura tentatively. She looked like she was going to break.

"Are you-"

"I can't be here right now," she interrupted, grabbing her bag. "Can you tell Kohei I'm feeling sick or something? I need to get out of here."

"Ok, I'm coming with you," Tomoyo said.

"No. You need to-"

Tomoyo shook her head. "I can do that another time. Explain it to them for me would you Eriol? You need someone to be with you right now. I'm coming with you."

With a heavy breath, she nodded. "All right."

"Bye girls." Eriol took Tomoyo's hand and whispered, "Let her talk."

She nodded dutifully.

:::

Tomoyo took Sakura's car key and drove. During the entire ride, Sakura remained rigid and silent in the passenger seat. Tomoyo didn't say anything. When they arrived at her apartment, Sakura let her lead and she followed numbly.

It was inside her apartment suite that Sakura then felt her knees go weak. Tomoyo placed a strong arm around her and guided her towards the sofa, and there, she began to cry. Painful sobs, coming from deep inside. Tomoyo let her cry it out and waited.

Her heart constricting too, Tomoyo passed her the tissue box. It took a long, long moment for Sakura's cries to quiet down and eventually stop. And another few minutes of silence before she found her voice and was willing to talk again.

"Two years ago, I gave up on him." With a derisive laugh, a laugh directed at herself, she continued, "it was only two years ago, Tomo. Can you believe it? I continued to love him for six more years after high school."

Sakura wiped her cheeks, then folded the wet tissue in her hands.

"And then I met Kohei…and he was so wonderful. He loved me the way I always wanted Syaoran to. I refused Kohei for a long time."

"What made you say yes?"

Her gaze falling to her lap, she said, "Syaoran said one day that I should date him. That I should give it a try."

"He…"

"That was when it finally hit me that things would never change between us. Syaoran would never see me as anything more than a friend. So I gave up. I stopped loving him that way…I really did."

Though she knew the words would hurt, Tomoyo said quietly, "Then why are you crying right now?"

Sakura met Tomoyo's sympathetic gaze. She didn't want to admit it or say it out loud. Fresh tears filled her eyes again.

"Because for one moment back there…" At the memory, her heart ached again. Squeezing her eyes shut, the tears escaped through the corners of her eyes. She hated herself for feeling or thinking it, so the words, "For one moment…he loved me back," came out painfully.

Tomoyo's grey eyes filled with tears too as she held Sakura in her arms.

* * *

><p><em>AN: Whoo, talk about drama... dare I say the tides are changing? =)_


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